Aviya Kushner wrote in her substack today about two poets who write about the holocaust. I’m one of them. Check it out. Here’s a page
I’ll be talking a bit about it on the 9th of October at Writers House on 6 Kaplan St…
About inheritance – august 24, 2023 Read Post »
Have you noticed that people are a little crazier than usual? That, yes, we have to solve disputes first by talking. But now the minute we start talking our voices become louder and louder so we don’t have to hear the other side. Fascinating. At the beginning of what was called “the reform” I had a conversation with a religious man I know and I mentioned that I am not happy living under a religious dictatorship. “Why?” he said, “How would your life change? Would it matter to you that you have to wear sleeves?” That was the worst scenario he could imagine for me. Now we’re separating men and women, and studies have shown that this leads to depression for the people depressed. I am going to be seeing this guy again soon and I am sure our conversation will be quite different. The worst scenario is much worse. And we probably won’t be able to talk.
Crazy – Aug 24, 2023 Read Post »
Eight ladies sit in the middle of a pretty empty theater in the matinee watching Barbie. And we enjoyed it. But for me the greatest part was leaving the theater and seeing crowds of young people – male and female – in costume waiting in line to get in.
There is something about Dizengoff Center that is so extreme, so perverted, so permissive that drives me wild.
barbie – august 23, 2023 Read Post »
I don’t mean children orphaned from their parents. I mean grandparents orphaned from their children. Children who are leaving the country because the opportunities are better somewhere else. Too many of my friends have said goodbye to the grandkids they helped raise knowing they will do well far away. They raised their children in a wonderful nurturing environment – but the next generation will grow up in a different education and culture. Unless…..
Orphaned – August 22, 2023 Read Post »
We see this ad on the bus and I’m thinking, “what kind of fuss will the haredim make about such nudity?” And at that very moment Ezi exclaims in ecstasy, “Those are exactly the shorts we wore when I was growing up – with the pockets showing! They’re back!”
nostalgia – august 22, 2023 Read Post »
We are sitting in an elegant cafe, Reviva, and having a very civilized conversation about keeping fit, and all I can think of is what it can feel like to drop an enemy. I would really have to hate in order to pull it off, and there are a very very few people that I could imagine hating – and it wouldn’t be an anonymous enemy.
So what can it be like to come up to someone sitting by a carwash with his son and shoot them point blank? You have to really not see them as individuals and really hate them as a group.
I’m thinking about this as I intently watch a very pretty young girl at the table next to ours, and suddenly I realize she has switched places so that she’s behind a potted plant where I can’t see her. I must have been trying to visualize what it was like to be a terrorist too much in my attempt to understand them. If you are the girl who was at Reviva’s tonight, and you felt endangered, I apologize.
murder – august 21, 2023 Read Post »
Everything is late today. Its always that way when I get a haircut, but especially today when he was in a particularly bad mood. Or maybe he hates me.
It all started during the big epidemic when I was sick of worrying about being in a hairdressing salon in a strip mall. I hated the parking search, the fear of crowds, the whole shtik. And when I heard that a famous stylist had closed his salon in Kikar Medina and opened in his garage a block away, I made an immediate appointment. That’s when I started getting big compliments, and became addicted. He hadn’t lowered his prices from the posh salon, he hadn’t upgraded his furniture, he hadn’t added more than a coffee machine. Still, the place was crowded with models and very sexy women.
Today there were elderly women and me. And for some reason everything was backed up. And I wound up spending four hours there without a single smile. Of course they relieved the nasty lump in my wallet.
F OUR HOURS AT THE HAIRDRESSER!
In this heat, where everyone just wants to sleep and I have a thousand things to do!
late – august 20, 2023 Read Post »
i asked chat what to do about solving our problem. It gave me an answer but I kept resisting the advice. See?
Convincing someone that their argument is dangerous can be a delicate process that requires empathy, understanding, and effective communication. Here’s a step-by-step approach you can take:
This may be the biggest obstacle of all. Neither of us are calm now. We are too worried about what will happen if we lose, to be receptive. So let’s say I can pretend and move on.
So far, everyone I’ve spoken to on the other side has spouting such nonsense I lose respect for them with the first sentence. After that, I sit there with a fake smile.
The first goal, of living in peace, works perfectly. Most of us believe that Jews deserve a homeland. After that, it’s chaos. No two people of all the millions can agree how it can be realized. Even within our own family.
Response: Pooh-pooh.
Fake news
Okay, I’ll have to work on this
Remember, people are more likely to be receptive to change when they feel heard and respected. Approach the conversation with an open mind and a genuine desire to help them see the potential dangers in their argument.
try try and try again – august 19, 2023 Read Post »
