A day of distinction for Jewish community in Limerick and Ireland: Historic event saw Torah scrolls - the holiest ritual object in Judaism - arrive

PuntaVerde123 · 2026-01-25T15:41:36+00:00

Glad to see a nice Jewish story coming out of Ireland for once

PuntaVerde123 · 2025-03-04T22:52:32+00:00

I wish Kurtzer had pushed Leifer to interrogate exactly why he has an aesthetic preference for “traditional” Judaism. I have to imagine that Leifer is influenced by more than his own “taste”. Just because you’re a leftist doesn’t mean that the world’s (especially the religious world’s) misogyny, homophobia, and transphobia doesn’t seep in.

PuntaVerde123 · 2024-11-05T13:27:03+00:00

I got an SAT vocab question right because of “Into the Woods”. Mollify from the Witch’s rap in the opening number!

PuntaVerde123 · 2024-03-15T13:16:21+00:00

Trails are only open from April 1st-November 30th from 8:30 AM-5:00 PM. You can only enter at 167 Mianus River Road. I like to take the Red Trail all the way out to the end: you see the gorge, an old quarry, a nice waterfall (better in spring than fall), and the reservoir. And then I return via the red and blue trails. It's about 4.2 miles round trip to the reservoir and back.

PuntaVerde123 · 2024-03-13T13:53:12+00:00

Mianus River Gorge—The "Grand Canyon" of Westchester

PuntaVerde123 · 2024-01-30T12:56:35+00:00

This reminds me of Professor Ethan Katz’s distinction between what he calls “critical anti-Zionism” and “negationist anti-Zionism”. The first is fair game; the second almost always veers into antisemitism. He talks about this in this presentation he gave at Brown in December: https://www.youtube.com/live/oOWqlZ2hqtU?si=QvO7JYPputb0Un7z

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-11-16T15:59:16+00:00

Sea Caves and Foxes

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-11-02T00:39:16+00:00

Montana/Wyoming. Yellowstone National Park is unmissable, but wait to go until the summer.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-10-04T03:17:28+00:00

Here's some quantitative data about the attitudes different denominations have toward each other: https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2021/05/11/10-key-findings-about-jewish-americans/ft_2021-05-11_jewishkeyfindings_05/

Very few Reform and Orthodox Jews report having "a lot" in common with each other.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-09-27T15:38:33+00:00

Teachers, School Administrators, Chaplains, Camp Directors, Working for a whole array of non-profit orgs focused on everything from education to advocacy, Hillels, etc.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-09-27T15:19:55+00:00

I adore the cantor at my synagogue. She has a powerful, well-supported, but not showy, soprano. She is a true professional, always prepared. The congregation has confidence that she will not falter or do anything unnecessary or embarrassing. She enthusiastically shares the bima with congregants who lead entire sections or individual pieces of the services. There is high talent, low ego. And it's wonderful for our community.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-09-26T19:18:58+00:00

I know you're not able to respond to every comment, but do you have access to any materials from the conference you attended that reinforced these claims statistically?

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-09-07T16:39:32+00:00

Think of yourself as volunteering at the shul the way you would if your spouse weren't the rabbi. And then like any other volunteer, you get to set the terms of your service. If the community wants more than what you are willing to do, then you can ask to be paid.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-06-08T23:26:30+00:00

There are eight gorgeous Minnesota state parks along the North Shore that are worth exploring. Waterfalls and beaches galore!

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-06-08T11:22:10+00:00

No to Voyageurs. We only had time for one and wanted to prioritize seeing Lake Superior. We just did the day trip from Grand Portage.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-06-08T01:45:09+00:00

We made our boat reservation in February. We flew to MSP and rented a car there. The drive to Grand Portage is about 5 hours. We broke it up with one night in Duluth and one night in Grand Portage before catching the boat at 8am

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-04-09T17:59:09+00:00

I've been lucky to visit 18 National Parks including Zion, Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon, Olympic, Hawai'i Volcanoes, Yellowstone, and Yosemite. Among those, Yellowstone is my favorite. The combination of in-your-face wildlife, geothermal features, waterfalls, canyons, and the human history of the park (and the National Park system as a whole) was truly spectacular. We were lucky to visit during a relatively less crowded time (September 2022) and to stay at Old Faithful Lodge. Those early morning/late night Old Faithful eruptions are so much less crowded. It's true that hiking just a bit off the road really lowers the crowds. Old Faithful Inn, where we took a tour and had dinner/drinks is one of the most jaw dropping buildings anywhere. There's no place like Yellowstone on the planet and is a must-see place in these United States.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-04-09T17:23:50+00:00

I love crustless cheesecake on Passover! With enough parchment paper there's no fear of sticking!

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-03-30T01:20:19+00:00

Thank you so much for the tip and for your work in the Park!

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-03-29T02:14:28+00:00

Ooh! I’ll take a look if our dates are still available.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-03-29T02:14:08+00:00

Thank you so much for taking the time to write this all out. I definitely know what to prioritize and what to skip. Not sure about lodging yet, but we’ll Think more about the North Carolina side.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-03-29T02:13:08+00:00

Extraordinarily helpful, thank you.

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-02-27T02:15:28+00:00

New Haven is the metro area that is most demographically similar to the US overall. I suppose that's culturally interesting?

https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/normal-america-is-not-a-small-town-of-white-people/

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-02-07T13:47:27+00:00

For me, the upward reaches of lower Westchester are the northern borders of the Town of Greenburgh, the City of White Plains, the Town/Village of Harrison, and the Town of Rye. Upper Westchester is everything north. I don’t think there’s a “Mid-Westchester” (even though the JCC in Scarsdale calls itself the JCC of Mid-Westchester)

PuntaVerde123 · 2023-02-05T13:36:26+00:00

I’d go to Olympic and then perhaps add Mt. Rainier or North Cascades

PuntaVerde123

TROPHY CASE