Going way back

In the early years of our marriage, money was quite tight. One of the ways we economized was that I took to trimming Barry’s hair. I cannot say I was ever very good at it, but he was not all that particular so it seemed to work. For very different reasons, we found ourselves having to resort to this activity we have not done in well over forty years. I do have a decent hair scissors which I use to trim my bangs between full haircuts.

Normally, he would have gone for a haircut before Passover, but that did not happen because by then the salons had closed. There is a strong tradition not to take haircuts during the weeks after Passover, and a few days ago we reached the point where they are permitted. We then wanted to wait until the weather was warm enough to do this outside on the patio rather than in the house. This afternoon was sunny and warm, so now was the time.

Let me just put it this way, I am not expecting any long lines of people to show up at our door for this service, but two things are true. The first is that Barry continues to be unparticular about such things. And the second is that his hair has thinned quite significantly over the years, which made this endeavor both easier and a lot less messy. Still, after many months, I must have cut off at least a couple of inches. The good news is that he looks reasonably presentable and he is quite pleased.

What follows is something I saw posted on facebook. For those of you not familiar with all the holidays and observances noted in this amusing piece (albeit there are some errors, like every time you see “its” it should be “it’s”), I will provide some brief descriptions:

Yom Tov – “holiday,” literally good day

Tisha B’Av – the 9^th day of the month of Av, a day on which many sad events occurred

Purim – a holiday celebrating deliverance as told in The Book of Esther

Rosh Hashana – Jewish New Year

Sukkot – Festival of Booths

Chanukah – Festival of Lights

Tu B’Shvat – the new year for trees

Pesach – Passover (“Erev Pesach” is the day before the holiday)

Shabbat - Sabbath

Havdalah – a weekly ceremony marking the end of Shabbat or a holiday

Please continue to stay safe and well!

Love,

Rebecca

This says it all

Love,

Rebecca

Reopening bowling alleys

It is really quite stunning how much our thinking about simple things has shifted over the past two months. Take bowling alleys. While I no longer have the strength to bowl (not to mention that I never had much talent), we have taken our grandchildren to bowling alleys numerous times and they always enjoy it. Suddenly it is hard to imagine not only how we ever did this but how we could ever consider doing it again. Think about it: putting on those smelly shoes that have been handled and worn by numerous people, sticking your fingers in those holes that are likely never cleaned, let alone disinfected, the list is nearly endless.

Our view of what once seemed the simplest activities has altered so quickly. So I was stunned to read about bowling alleys reopening in a number of states, along with barbershops, hair and nail salons, body art studios, and gyms. There do not appear to be any strict rules about the number of new cases before these facilities are opening. The restrictions are tough, for sure, but not as tough as the infection.

On a much happier and lighter note, our Julia has now mastered the wonderful skill of riding a bicycle! This is so exciting!

And our daughter Dina has made me a video of challah braiding techniques for 6 and even 7 strands. Maybe this week….

Meanwhile, just stay safe and well!

Love,

Rebecca

Dreams

Barry often wakes up in the morning and tells me about strange dreams he has had. Tuesday night’s dream found him in India, where the corona virus outbreak is rampant. Why India? Who knows?

But whether I dream and just do not remember, or dream very rarely, I am always surprised when I wake up remembering a dream as I did a couple of mornings ago. In my dream, Barry and I had driven to a water park resort. When we arrived near the site, we must have made a wrong turn and found ourselves on a dirt road, but we eventually made our way to the entrance. Not surprisingly, there were long lines of cars and hundreds of people. And I suddenly remembered that we are in the middle of a deadly pandemic and wondered why in the world we had chosen to come to this place, and why so many other people had done the same.

This was especially puzzling because our children and grandchildren have visited such places and we have never gone with them because they are not a good environment for someone with pulmonary problems. It was quite strange.

We watched a couple of good movies over the past week or so, one old and one new. We were prompted to watch the 1956 film, “The Wrong Man,” after seeing the actual man on which the story is based, Christopher Emmanuel Balestrero, on an old episode of “To Tell the Truth.” It is apparently one of the few films directed by Alfred Hitchcock that was based on a true story and whose plot closely follows the real-life events. Balestrero was played by Henry Fonda and his wife, Rose, by Vera Miles. It is a rather frightening tale of mistaken identity which nearly destroyed the lives of this perfectly innocent couple, the parents of two young sons. It was only through a stroke of luck that the man who actually committed the robberies in question was identified. It really is an outstanding film.

The second film is a new one titled “Bad Education,” available on HBO, Amazon Prime, and hulu, which stars Hugh Jackman as school superintendent Dr. Francis A. "Frank" Tassone and Allison Janney as his assistant, Pamela "Pam" Gluckin. Based on a true story, Tassone, an incredibly popular administrator, and Gluckin, unbeknownst to many around them, were found by a curious reporter for the high school’s newspaper to have embezzled millions of dollars from the school district. It makes for quite a sobering tale about how much we humans are able to overlook the obvious when alternatives better suit our desires.

Please continue to stay safe and well!

Love,

Rebecca

A new and moving tradition

New York is a big city and people do not usually think of it as a friendly or supportive place. But, like the period following the 11^th of September in 2001, New Yorkers generally know when they need to come together and offer a supportive community to those in need. Once again, residents of many neighborhoods in The Big Apple have found novel ways to do this. For the past few weeks, every evening at 7 pm, they open their windows and just make noise in recognition of the thousands upon thousands of New Yorkers who are out there risking their lives to help others during these challenging times. The tradition has taken hold here in our little neighborhood in the Bronx, and we have been dutifully opening our front door and stepping out onto the porch to add our support. There really isn’t much to see, but you can definitely hear the cheering, and it is really heartwarming.

This link will give you a bit of an idea of what it sounds like, but it does not really do justice to the feeling of standing outside and listening to it each evening.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/04/10/nyregion/nyc-7pm-cheer-thank-you-coronavirus.html

On a much lighter note, the Jeopardy! College Championship has been broadcast over the past two weeks, culminating in the final two games last week. The $200 clue in the category “Unique College Courses” was

One of the topics in a Major League Baseball Course at Arizona State is this player who broke the color barrier in 1947.

The correct question is, of course, “Who was Jackie Robinson?”

https://twitter.com/yayroger/status/1250561404337299457?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1250561404337299457&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fftw.usatoday.com%2F2020%2F04%2Fjeopardy-jackie-robinson-video

But the player who rang in first asked “Who was Babe Ruth?” This had to be one of the funniest – dare I say dumbest - moments we could ever remember in a Jeopardy! game. First of all, Babe Ruth played major league baseball from 1914 to 1935; he died in 1948. And second, Babe Ruth was white, so he did not break any color barriers.

You have to feel a little bit badly for that Jeopardy! contestant who will forever be remembered for that ridiculous question!

Stay safe and well!

Love,

Rebecca

A little levity never hurts

We just heard the late breaking news that Bernie Sanders has dropped out of the presidential race, and this is what came to mind (just replace “Birdie” with “Bernie,” and it’s nearly perfect!

Bye, bye, Birdie
I'm gonna miss you so
Bye, bye, Birdie
Why'd ya have to go

No more sunshine
It's followed you away
I'll cry, Birdie
Till you're home to stay

I'll miss the way you smile
As though it's just for me
And each and ev'ry night
I'll write to you faithfully

Bye, bye, Birdie,

It's awful hard to bear
Bye, bye, Birdie
Guess I'll always care
Guess I'll always ca-a-a-a-are
Guess I'll always care!

Love,

Rebecca

Struggling to find words

You all know me, a person seldom at a loss for words. It has been a difficult past eight years, having survived two unrelated cancers on top of a long-term, albeit fortunately slowly progressing, pulmonary disease. I think I have maintained a pretty good spirit and sense of humor through it all.

But these are different times. At the risk of sounding a bit selfish, those previous challenges were just mine, and I was fortunately surrounded by many people who could support and care for me. But now we are all suffering, all navigating very difficult waters. Everywhere I look, everything I read (still with difficulty) or see on television is focused on people who have it far worse, not only the thousands of medical personnel who are on the front lines in hospitals, but the everyday folks who enable us to continue to put food on our tables and provide us with many of our everyday needs.

I do not have any good answers for this. As we approach the first night of Passover, my usual enthusiasm for this holiday is nowhere to be found. Over forty years ago we had our own “Passover miracle” when our daughter born after only 28 weeks of the normal 40 survived those early tenuous weeks. I can only hope that the first bites of matzah will awaken some reserve of hope.

Meanwhile, we cannot let out guards down. We need to continue to do everything we can to curb the spread of this dreadful disease, and hope that we will get through this without too much pain.

And again, as I ended my last post, a little bit of humor can never hurt.

Love,

Rebecca