popa, I would have brought you the appropriate offerings, but I have never been to Ottawa myself. I suppose that I should be embarassed at having never been to my nation’s capital, but I have never had a reason or opportunity. Go west young man.

Here most people have sump pumps a/o a special kind of rubber ball in the drain.

Stamper, I am not fluent. I taught myself to understand because my parents spoke it, only when they didn’t want us to understand what they were saying. I have picked up a bit of conversational Yiddish through the years. I can read it very slowly because I find it difficult to read Hebrew or Yiddish without “pintelach”. My parents sent me to Hebrew day school (Talmud Torah) as opposed to the, then popular, Yiddish day school (I.L.Peretz Folkschul).

Very interesting article. Who knew?

Several years ago my girlfriend (who is blonde and speaks with an English accent) worked in the ladies wear department of a large department store. There were 2 non-frum Jewish women who were very well known there as they shopped there several times a week. They always bought a lot of items and never tried them on, then returned them several days later. They always would pull out the bottom item from a stack of folded garments, which meant the staff had a lot of extra work just straightening out the neatly folded items. One day, these women were looking at fancy sweaters and had unfolded nearly the entire display. My friend overheard part of their conversation where one said to the other “why don’t you ask the saleslady?” The other replied ” Vos vais zee? Zee is a shtick fleish mit eigen.” Absolutely furious, my friend went up to them and very sweetly said “Is there something I can help you with? Are you perhaps looking for something for a special simcha like a Bar Mitzvah?” Both of these women turned bright red and began hemming and hawing and quickly left the department. PS: they weren’t seen in that department for several months. So, we also must be very careful about what we say because you never know who can hear you.

Well,the only good reason for Yidden to know so early is that one could start baking for a bris. Mind you, I don’t think I would like to eat pastry that has been frozen for over 7 months.

Sender Av, I agree with you. Religion aside, many articles have been written about Atlanta and how “livable” a city it is. It is very beautiful and relatively easy to get around, except for the high number of streets with the name Peachtree in them. That could be confusing – of course, I was there in the pre-GPS era. I even was able to navigate quite well using public transit. And most importantly, I felt safe there. A year after being in Atlanta, I visited New Orleans and did not feel safe for one second. I think you are very lucky to live in such a nice community.

Most of you have never been to the middle of Canada, so I doubt that I have to worry about anyone knowing who I am. I am not ashamed of anything, nor do I regret anything that I have posted, so if I were ever outed, it wouldn’t bother me. In fact, my dream would be for us to get together – there are so many of you that I would love to meet.

Of course, we have gone way, way off the topic of OUR Joseph, so the OP’s question has not yet been answered.

zahavasdad: It is likely that the reviews on Amazon saying that some people became more religious after reading the book, are not people who use the CR. I would doubt that anyone became a BT – perhaps a few began lighting Shabbat candles (a good start. I think that this proposed debate would be divisive because even if posters cannot participate – just read – they will start other threads and begin their own “debates”. Aside from myself, I don’t think that there are many non-frum posters (don’t know about readers, of course) so I can’t think of why this debate is really necessary. This is just my opinion, of course. Also, anyone accepting the job of being a participant in this debate will be responsible for a lot of hard work, writing and researching. So, if this actually happens, I hope that we can all be greatful to the participants – they will be investing a lot of time in the project.

Sender Av-I have been to Atlanta twice (quite a number of years ago) and found it to be a delightful place. I didn’t get much of a chance to learn much about the Jewish community as I was accompanying my ex-hubby on a business convention. I did get quite a laugh at the one Jewish house of worship that I passed on Peachtree called “The Temple”. To this day, it makes me laugh to think of an unfortunate, unnamed, generic temple – almost as if when they were building it, they coudn’t afford a name.

As for Savannah, I was there about 7 years ago. For a small community, it does have a lot to offer. It is a great tourist spot with the oldest synagogue in the south. It does have at least 3 synagogues, a day school/JCC and, according to the American Jewish Federations, the Jews in Savannah donate more money per capita than any other Jewish community in the US – of course, the stats are at least 7 yrs. old, but still very amazing.

But he did have a lovely multi-colored coat.

If I am not mistaken, many midwifery programs for nurses are about 2 years. You may also need some experience as an OB/GYN nurse before this. She may become interested in specializing in another field while she is in training – this often happens, as these days there are many specialty fields in nursing. A very good specialty is epidemiology. A nurse-epidemiologist is one of the few fields where you get excellent jobs with no shiftwork involved. Good luck to your friend, whichever field she chooses. Nursing is a very rewarding career.

Feif Un: Refuah shleimah. I hope that you have a speedy recovery.

This article appeared in my local newspaper today. The Hospital for Sick Children, known as Sick Kids, in Toronto is one of the world’s largest childrens’ hospitals.As this article is from one of the news services, it is probably in many newspapers across Canada today.

OTTAWA — The attention on obesity and prevention programs in schools may be more damaging than beneficial as some doctors are finding children as young as five are being treated for such eating disorders as anorexia and bulimia.

Dr. Leora Pinhas, who heads the eating disorders program at The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) in Toronto, said she is seeing more younger children in her program now compared to five years ago when the majority of her in-patients were teens.

Recent statistics coming out of Britain reveal that in the past three years, 197 children from ages five to nine in the United Kingdom sought treatment for an eating disorder.

In the same period in Canada, the number sat at 166 children from ages five to 12, said Pinhas.

“You have to keep in mind that our population is smaller than the U.K. We are 33 million, they are 55 million,” she said.

According to 2008-09 statistics from the Canadian Institute for Health Information, eight boys under the age of five sought treatment for an eating disorder compared to zero for girls. In the age range of six to 10, no boys were admitted but 17 girls were.

The numbers shoot up dramatically for girls between 11 and 15 (386 were admitted for treatment) and girls between the ages of 16 to 20 (572 were admitted for treatment).

Pinhas said eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia tend to be generational and can pass through three generations of women.

A 2005 study regarding early onset eating disorders co-authored by Pinhas found anorexia has been on the rise over the last 50 years and is the third most common chronic illness affecting adolescent girls.

In Ontario, there are less than 20 hospital beds — split among Toronto, Ottawa and London — for kids and teens seeking treatment for eating disorders, a number that has to change, says Pinhas.

“I get about 100 new patients every year,” said Pinhas, who always has a waiting list.

“One in five teenage girls will have an eating disorder. I have 10 beds; I always think who’s the one who will not make it. It breaks my heart,” she said.

Pinhas is aware of five adult women who died from an eating disorder since January.

“They don’t tend to die in childhood, but five (deaths) is a lot already,” she said.

“We see children in sports like gymnastics, skating and ballet where they get clear messages that how tall they are and how heavy they are will affect whether they can be competitive,” said Pinhas, adding kids in these situations are told to lose weight and are rewarded if they do.

She also says the magnitude of our attention on obesity and putting overweight people in the same category has blurred the definition of obesity.

“Someone with a BMI of 25 is overweight; someone with a BMI of 45 is obese, but it’s seen as the same thing,” Pinhas said.

Prevention programs in schools are also influencing children to cut the fat, said Pinhas, who asks her own kids to be excused from the lectures.

“Kids are learning about good foods and bad foods. For the wrong kid to be told sugar is bad for you, then they go home and don’t eat sugar and will also think other things must be bad,” said Pinhas.

“Kids are very black-and-white thinkers. There are no greys; it’s all or nothing,” she said, explaining how the program questions parental authority and puts the responsibility on the child to follow through with healthy food choices.

Pinhas advises parents to make sure their child gets his or her height and weight measured at least once a year. Stunted growth is one of the first signs a child may be dealing with an eating disorder.

“If they are a normal size in kindergarten and all of a sudden the shortest kid in the class in second grade, that is a sign,” said Pinhas.

— Postmedia News

“Also most of my friends in real life”

PBA, do actually have some friends who don’t know you name? How do they introduce you to somebody else? “This is my pal,uh, er, well I will tell you some other time.”

I am happy to report that all of my friends know my name – both first and last. It makes life much simpler.

Observanteen: I give you credit for dealing with anger and frustration in this fashion. You get everything off your chest and nobody is harmed or insulted. After reading your letter, I must say that your “anger” is very mild. If I were to write such a letter I think that I would use much stronger language (I don’t mean swearing) that would say exactly what I feel. Even if you had actually mailed that letter you really have said nothing that you might regret at a later date. I am quite impulsive at times and if my hypothetical letter were mailed, I do believe that the recipient would be extremely angry with me and probably would never speak to me again. I give you top marks for being so logical and mild, even in your anger. Yasher kocha (I believe that is how it is said in the feminine form) to you.

There used to be a David David in my city.

And where else but in a place like Atlanta will you hear someone say “Shabbat Shalom Y’all”?

“My son (who is a regular yeshivish bochur) uses velcro inside his yarmulke.”

We carry this product at the gift shop at my shul. It is called “Kip-On” – a play on words, as you can see. It is very inexpensive. The only problem is that having velcro constantly attached to your hair can be damaging.

Peacemaker, do you swim with a bar of soap in your hand? Water alone, will not clean you.

There should be some sort of training for shadchanim. I am surprised that an organization such as Aish or Agudah doesn’t offer such a course – unless they have never been approached to do so. The students should study psychology, some sociology relevant to the various backgrounds and customs of different Jews, how to run a small business and business and personal ethics. This is just a basic core that the curriculum should contain. I am certain that many of you could add more topics. The program could probably be accomplished in 4 to 6 months of full time learning or a year or more of part time learning (taking one course at a time in the evening).

Chabad gives away calendars like this.

mw, you said “But taling to Hashem in your own langauge is definitely a great idea, and I can testify it really helps one devolop a real relationship relationship with HKB”H.”

Last week on another thread, I said that at my shul (Conservative) just before the silent part of the Amidah, they say that you can use the Hebrew, the English or words of your own choosing. I was told by another poster that this incorrect and shouldn’t be done. I know a few people at my shul who just pour out their hearts at this time. I choose to daven the Hebrew portion but occasionally read the English to refresh myself on the meaning. I know that many people use Hebrew only siddurs, but I am happy that we use a bilingual one as my Hebrew reading skills are pretty good, but my understanding of much of the davening is lacking.

Personally, I have never worn a tie.