Three posts

I am sitting at my computer early Thursday morning with three ideas in my head, two of which deserve their own space. So I will tackle the third one first, and then move on to the other two.

There are so many great new films to be seen! Unfortunately, quite a few are foreign language films, and my reading ability has still not improved sufficiently to make reading subtitles possible. I know this must seem puzzling to all of you reading this. It is puzzling to me as well. But apparently somewhat different parts of the brain handle these seemingly related functions, so I am able to write but still struggle to re-read what I’ve written. Well, at least it provides a good excuse for my often mediocre writing.

[Note: that last sentence will prompt many of you dear readers to send messages and tell me how articulate I am, and I do appreciate the words of encouragement. But sitting here at the computer is quite a different exercise than live interactions, so while I may be performing acceptably at the former I am easily flustered by the latter.]

Be that as it may, the good news is that there are plenty of new English language films of interest. We had a list of three, all playing at the Lincoln Plaza Cinema on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and chose “Frances Ha,” written and directed by Noah Baumbach, who also wrote and directed the 2005 film “The Squid and the Whale.” The movie tells a fascinating story about friendship and love as a young woman struggles to find her place in the world around her.  A.O. Scott captured it well (New York Times 18 May):

In the course of a little less than a year, Frances, heedlessly skipping through her 20s, suddenly falls down and feels the impact of reality. Or maturity. Or some other hard fact that she might have acknowledged before, but mostly for other people, or for later.

If you have a chance, this is one I definitely recommend. We are also hoping to see two other films currently showing at Lincoln Plaza, “What Maisie Knew” and “Stories We Tell.” I will report on them when we do.

Love,

Rebecca 

A funny memory

We had a nice Sabbath in Sharon, including a lunch hosted by long-time friends for a group of about 25 people, ten of them our whole family. We decided to head back to New York first thing Sunday morning because of the train accident in Connecticut which was anticipated to cause traffic problems. At one point in Connecticut the traffic on the highway slowed to a virtual standstill, but that turned out to be traffic for a local college graduation. So all in all, our trip home was uneventful.

Barry has been quite busy the past two days as his laboratory and office were moved to a brand new building. Most of the laboratories in which Barry has worked over the years have been in very old structures, and we have made jokes about the dinosaur footprints in the halls. But this is a brand new building, which is exciting. Of course laboratory work has changed significantly in the years that Barry has been conducting scientific research. Now, much of the work is done in what are known as “core facilities,” laboratories that specialize in things like DNA sequencing. Newly constructed space is designed and allocated with this in mind. I am anxious to go and see the new laboratory when I am over at Mount Sinai for my next appointment with one of my physicians there.

Since it has been a quiet last few days, I opened my notes from the writing class, and selected one of the assignments to share here. The assignment was to write about telephones, and I knew immediately what I would write.

We were at the Bottom Line, a wonderful old club in Greenwich Village, on a Saturday night in 1995. Singer/songwriter Christine Lavin was performing. We had arrived early and found seats in the front row at the foot of the stage. That same evening, our teenage daughter had come into The City with friends. In those days, cell phones were much less common than they are today. We had one, a clunky “bag phone,” but our daughter did not, so she was to find a pay phone and call us to make arrangements to pick her up.

It was during a moment between songs, when the club was quiet, waiting for Christine to begin the next song, that our cell phone rang. Without missing a beat, Christine said “Oh, the phone! Is it for me?” She reached over the edge of the stage and grabbed the phone from my husband’s hand and started a conversation with our very confused daughter. When she told Christine that she was trying to reach “Dr. Rosenstein,” Christine looked at Barry and said “Oh, so you’re a doctor!” The audience roared. Our daughter later told us that she could hear my laughing so she knew that everything was alright. After chatting briefly, Christine handed Barry back the phone, and he quickly instructed our daughter to call back in a few minutes.

Things got complicated after that and we had a hard time finding each other, but eventually we did manage to pick her up and return home. Sometimes I bemoan the fact that our digital devices are running our lives. But then I remember that crazy evening so long ago, before they were so ubiquitous.

Once again, the news is filled with sadness and pain, this time the tornadoes in Oklahoma. We can only hope that all those who are suffering will find the strength to rebuild and move forward.

Love,

Rebecca 

Beautiful weather, great food, dear friends, and loving family

When I sit down at the computer to prepare a blog posting, I usually have something in mind that I plan to write about, and I start with coming up with the little phrase that will become the header on the posting. Of course sometimes while I am writing I change gears and go back to revisit that header. Today I started with “beautiful weather, great food, dear friends, and loving family,” and for reasons I simply cannot fathom it reminded me of an episode of The Twilight Zone first aired in March 1962 called “To Serve Man.” If you have never seen this you must find the 25 minutes or so to watch what is undoubtedly one of the best 

episodes of that legendary television program. 

http://www.myspace.com/video/o/the-twilight-zone-to-serve-man/37635576

We did have beautiful weather here in the northeast. There was a bit of rain on Wednesday afternoon but we managed to get home between the brief showers. Thursday was a magnificent day, and we spent much of the afternoon sitting on those new lounge chairs (I wrote about earlier) in Dina and Aaron’s yard.

The food was also great; no Jewish holiday is complete without its special foods. We had a delicious and relaxing lunch with some friends on the first day of the holiday, and we had my cheese blintzes and Dina’s cheesecake at Dina and Aaron’s house yesterday.

Today we have been playing catch-up, Barry with his work and me with my various cognitive exercises, including the two days of New York Times crosswords puzzles I missed doing. I have been playing Set by myself and I think I might almost be ready to go up against Joshua now, but my guess is he will still cream me.

This morning I registered for the next semester at the 92^nd Street Y. I am going to take the next installment of the classical music class, “World of Music II: The Classical Symphony – from Haydn to Beethoven.”

Haydn traveled to London for the first time on New Year’s day 1791 and began the most celebrated period of a very celebrated career. The twelve symphonies he wrote during his two London residencies are known as his “London” symphonies, and they mark the pinnacle of his symphonic output. Haydn’s student, Beethoven, would then pick up the mantle of his teacher, build from Haydn’s accomplishments and dramatically reimagine the symphonic form. Our studies this semester will travel from Haydn to Beethoven, exploring works such as Haydn’s Symphonies No. 94 (the “Surprise”), No. 97 in C major and No. 103 (the “Drum Roll”); and Beethoven Symphonies Nos. 1, 3 (“Eroica”), 5 and 6 (“Pastoral.”) Along the way we’ll explore a changing post-Emperor Joseph Vienna, and the impact of the French Revolution on musical composition.

I also signed up for the course given during the slot before that one, called “Women in Song, A look at Women’s Role in American Popular Song.”

This section will focus on a generally underappreciated group of songwriters—women—across most American genres—Blues, Jazz, Theater, Film, Pop, Gospel and Folk—from the 1920’s through to the present. Artists to be considered are Bessie Smith, Dorothy Fields, Nina Simone, Carolyn Leigh, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Carole King, Cynthia Weil, Laura Nyro, Aretha Franklin and Joni Mitchell—all the best of the best—as well as more recent and influential singer-songwriters such as Kate Bush, Fiona Apple and Joanna Newsom.

I am familiar with some, but not all, of the artists he is planning to discuss in the course.  But what caught my eye was Carole King. Many of you know that I am a long-time avid fan of hers. I am the only person I know who owns every one of her albums; lest some of you are wondering, there were two before and many after “Tapestry.” So I am really looking forward to this course.

Have a wonderful weekend, all.

Love,

Rebecca 

Lucky 7

I spent the better part of yesterday morning preparing cheese blintzes. Perhaps I am moving somewhat slowly these days, but it never ceases to amaze me just how long cooking can take. As I sat down to write this, I suddenly realized that I had prepared precisely 49 cheese blintzes, corresponding to the 49 days (7 weeks) between when the Jewish people left Egypt (Pesach/Passover) and received the Torah at Mount Sinai (Shavuot/Feast of Weeks). If I had tried to prepare precisely 49 cheese blintzes it never would have come out that way, but just by chance I hit that magic number.

Tomorrow, Barry and I are invited to the home of some friends for lunch.  Like us, they mainly live in the New York area, but they have three daughters, one of whom lives here, and they have bought a house in Sharon. We have often considered buying a house here, but I have to admit that renting the apartment has the major advantage that we do not have to worry about taking care of things. We have a hard enough time looking after the house in Riverdale so it is hard to think about taking on another one. Tomorrow, Dina and family will be having lunch with our friends’ daughter and her husband and children while we are with their parents/grandparents.

The blintzes are for lunch with our family on the second day (Thursday). I always used to make cheesecake as well but I decided to forego that this year. I have only a large spring-form pan which makes a cake far too big for us: for various reasons the only people who eat it are Simmie, Dina, and me, and it is hard to justify making this whole big cake for the three of us. But if I do say so myself it is a killer cheesecake and I need to find an opportunity to make it.

Barry went to a local sporting goods store earlier today to buy a baseball glove, the first one he has owned since he was a little boy. Watching Joshua’s pitching arm, it is clear Barry needed to do this to keep from injuring his hand. But after nearly 40 years of marriage to a fellow whose pursuits have been more intellectual than physical, there is a part of me that feels very strange to have a husband who owns a baseball glove. I suppose Barry could have owned and used sporting equipment when our daughters were younger. But they never expressed much interest in such things. Grandchildren are an amazing joy, and having this grandson when we are accustomed to a house full of girls has been a special adventure.

Back in girl world, I spent a wonderful afternoon with Gabriella putting together her newest Lego set, the Heartlake City Pool. I have never seen so many tiny pieces – 423 to be exact! Ella is so good with this. It’s an enormous joy to see her enthusiasm and determination. She stuck with it far longer than I expected; I had to convince her to save a bit for the next time.

I will be off-line for the next couple of days. Whatever you have planned, it should be in good health with the warmth of friends and family and appreciation of all the blessings around us.

Love,

Rebecca 

Every day....

In the United States, today is Mother’s Day. So that got me to thinking about why we have or need such a day. On Wikipedia I read:

Mother's Day is a celebration honoring mothers and motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on various days in many parts of the world, most commonly in March or May. It complements Father's Day, a similar celebration honoring fathers.

This was followed by descriptions of the holiday in various countries, and this one piqued my interest:

Israel

The Jewish population celebrates Mother's Day on Shevat 30 of the Jewish calendar, which falls between 30 January and 1 March. The celebration was set as the same date that Henrietta Szold died. Henrietta had no biological children, but her organization Youth Aliyah rescued many Jewish children from Nazi Germany and provided for them. She also championed children's rights. Szold is considered the "mother" of all those children, and that is why her annual remembrance day was set as Mother's Day. The holiday has evolved over time, becoming a celebration of mutual love inside the family, called Family Day. Mother's Day is mainly celebrated by children at kindergartens. There are no longer mutual gifts among members of the family, and there is no longer any commercialization of the celebration. It is not an official holiday either.

As I continue to ponder this, my main thought is that I am very fortunate that, as a mother and grandmother, I do not feel any need for this day whatsoever. I am certain Barry feels similarly about Father’s Day. We are blessed and grateful to have two wonderful and devoted daughters 365 days of the year, and there has not been a year in the past 36 during which I have felt this more acutely than this past one.

So I want to turn this day on its head and thank my beautiful daughters, Simmie and Dina, for giving me the honor of being their mother. I want to thank Ronen and Aaron for letting me into their lives. And I want to thank Joshua, Eliana, Gabriella, and Maya for bringing so much joy to their parents and grandparents every day.

Love,

Rebecca (aka Mom, aka Nana)

When the rain comes…..

It has been a quiet couple of days. I have spent a little too much time “playing games.” I put that in quotation marks because these are the games that Heidi has prescribed: Rush Hour and Simon. I ordered a little electronic Simon but that won’t arrive for a few more days. Meanwhile, the game is available for free on-line, and I need to figure out how to download it onto my Samsung Galaxy Note II so that I can play it while I’m waiting for appointments and such. The Rush Hour game is really driving me nuts! I’ll stumble on the solution, but then I can’t remember how I got there. So I can keep working on the same configuration repeatedly and still not quite know how to do it. There must be a trick to this but my brain has not yet figured it out. Oh, right, that’s the whole point!

I was supposed to see my neurologist this morning but he sent an e-mail late last night saying that he has to cancel to perform a lumbar puncture on another patient. Talk about bringing back memories….my first couple of days at Memorial Sloan-Kettering were spent in a battery of diagnostic tests, including LP. Meanwhile, I still have an appointment with Heidi later this morning and the last session of the writing class this afternoon, as well as some shopping for Sabbath. We are going to be in Riverdale this week and are having some friends over for lunch.

On Sunday we have tickets for a taping of “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me” We are big fans of the show and had been to a taping in New York a few years ago and really enjoyed it. If you’re not familiar with the show, check it out at

http://www.npr.org/programs/wait-wait-dont-tell-me/

The northeast is getting some much needed rain, quite a lot of it. It has put a damper in our plans (so to speak) but all those wonderful flowers will only happen if there is enough water.

Meanwhile, I am hoping that this week’s wet weather will help insure dry weather for the Shavuot holiday next week. Shavuot is a wonderful holiday for vegetarians, because the tradition is to eat dairy foods. This holiday, which comes seven weeks (shavuot is the Hebrew word for weeks) after Passover, commemorates the giving of the Torah (Five Books of Moses) at Mount Sinai. Included in the Torah are the basics of the laws of Kashrut, laws relating to food. In particular, there are instructions on which animals may be eaten, and how they are to be slaughtered and prepared. Because the Jewish people were rushing to leave Egypt at the time they received these instructions, there was no time to properly prepare meat before their departure. Hence they ate dairy foods, and this has continued as the tradition. So it is a favorite holiday of vegetarians. My own particular favorites are quite traditional: blintzes and cheesecake. Not to be immodest but I do make a mean cheesecake: the ingredients are cream cheese, eggs, sugar, and vanilla, with a graham cracker crust and a sour cream topping. It’s not the most heart-healthy fare but it’s only once a year, so why not?

Love,

Rebecca

A wonderful weekend

The weekend did not disappoint. We arrived in Sharon around 10 on Friday morning. After unpacking the car, Barry picked up Eliana and Maya and brought them over to our apartment. We played and then prepared some macaroni and cheese for lunch. Maya seemed a bit lethargic and barely touched the lunch, and we were concerned that she was having a relapse of the virus from the previous week. Fortunately, it seems she was just tired from having been up a bit too late the night before, and was her usual self by Saturday morning. We had Friday night dinner with Dina and family.

At my therapy session last week, Heidi had recommended a number of games I should play, including Mille Bornes, a game I had not played since high school. Coincidentally, Aaron had just bought the game last week! After dinner Friday night, Dina and Gabriella, Aaron and Barry, and Joshua and I formed 3 teams and Aaron taught us how to play. We had a great time.

On Friday there had been smoke (yet again, hopefully to be resolved this week) in the synagogue building, so I stayed away on Saturday morning. We had two couples, long-time friends, join us for lunch at our apartment. It was really nice having some time with them, and although we all have grandchildren with whom we adore spending time, we were able to agree that having a quiet “grown-up” afternoon every now and then is a real treat. I am glad we were able to carve out that time.

Sunday was a busy day. Barry worked all morning while I took care of a number of household tasks, and then we headed off to McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket, RI, home of the minor league baseball PawSox team. This was the second time we had gone there. It is a great afternoon of fun, especially for Joshua, and would involve a fairly minimal cost if not for all the snacks: soft pretzels, popcorn, licorice, peanuts, and drinks! I marvel that Joshua is so thin! Unfortunately, in the four games we have seen since last summer (two PawSox and two Mets), we have yet to see the home team win. Still, a good time was had by all.

While we were at the game, Simmie and Ronen and Dina and Aaron took the girls to a carnival that was a fundraiser for a local day camp. Then we all gathered at Simmie and Ronen’s house for a family barbeque. Barry had brought up the meat, Simmie provided veggie burgers, Dina made potato salad and Simmie made cole slaw, Barry and Ronen manned the grill, and we had a terrific dinner.

We got up early Monday morning to head back to New York. The first order of business for Barry was to head to Mount Sinai for a meeting. For me, it was to call the home security company. When we were ready to leave on Friday, the house alarm showed a cryptic message and we were unable to set the alarm. I figured that the probability that someone would attempt to break into our house this particular weekend was relatively low, since to our knowledge there has never been an attempt in over 13 years that we have lived here. So we locked up and hoped for the best, and when we arrived home there was no sign of activity. The alarm company came out Monday afternoon and fixed it so we are all set now for our next trip.

Over the weekend we heard about an upcoming concert in Boston later this month to raise money for victims of the Boston Marathon attack. The headliners include James Taylor and Carole King. We managed to buy two tickets this morning, not great seats but it will undoubtedly be a moving event, and although I do consider myself a New Yorker, I am proud and happy to put on my “Boston hat” for this one.

Have a great week!

Love,

Rebecca