rebdoniel

One sentiment expressed in Hazal is the notion of giving tzedakah secretly, so as to not be a hypocrite and seek glory for one’s generosity. The inyan of “not giving alms before men” is expressed in Bava Batra 10b: What kind of charity is that which delivers a man from an unnatural death? When a man gives without knowing to whom he gives. and the beggar receives without knowing from whom he receives. Tosafot even say that this type of giving has the potential to save the giver from Gehenim.

If people lack anything exciting or unique to put on a resume, it will go into the trash heap.

I’ve had resumes forwarded to me, and I can concur with the above poster, for instance: if they all say went to Shulamith, then to Stern for a BA in English, does bikur holim, etc. that gets boring and repetitive after a while. A resume ought to convey what makes a person unique. And let’s be honest: how many people at age 21 have really done anything yet with their lives?

A good friend of mine got engaged 2 months ago, and he was 37, his kallah 39. He has semikha, moonlights as a hazzan, and is an accomplished attorney. He was previously a congregational rabbi for a couple of years. The kallah has a PhD in History, has authored 3 books, and has been a tenured professor for a few years.

I’d prefer to finish my own medical training prior to going back into the realm of shiddukhim. I think a person should find themselves and identify their purpose in life prior to bringing another person into the mix. I learned this the hard way, through life exeprience, and I got burned along the way, but I am glad I learned that now. I don’t want to be settled down and married at 23. I want to achieve more in terms of education, learning, and parnassa prior to being bogged down by the constraints of married life.

And marriage is largely like a job in many ways. I’ve long ago abandoned any romantic notions of shiddukhim. If two people have comparable worldviews, envision their lives similarly enough, find each other physically attractive, and value the other person’s life experiences, then that ought to be good enough to make a shiddukh.

A lot of the eitzot have been proven successful and correct. Walking regularly, eating mostly fruits and vegetables, reducing portions, adequate sleep, etc. are sound lifestyle and nutritional advice.

Moishyk,

I have different recipes for potato salad, one is pareve, the other halavi, the other basari.

The basari one is German potato salad. You take 8 ounces of either Jack’s facon or beef fry and fry it until crispy. Keep the oil from the “bacon.” Reserve the cooked bacon. Add a diced onion to the drippings and fry until soft. Add 3/4 cup cider vinegar, a little sugar, and a tablespoon of good, grainy mustard. Cook down for 2 minutes. Whisk, and add 1/4 cup of canola oil, slowly whisking it in. Season with salt and pepper, and add this hot dressing to your red potatoes, which have been cut into small chunks and boiled. Fold the dressing in, add chopped parsely and 8 thinly sliced scallions. Tweak the seasoning with salt and pepper.

The halavi one uses a dressing of cider vinegar, sugar, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, celery seed, pepper, mayonnaise, chopped dill, sour cream, and diced red onions, along with diced cooked baby carrots, thawed frozen peas, chopped pickle, red potatoes that have been boiled and cut into small chunks, and hard boiled egg. Garnish with a sprinkle of paprika. This is an Israeli-style salad, with the addition of peas, carrots, and pickles.

The pareve one is the same as the halavi one above, minus the sour cream. A pareve version of that potato salad can even be turned into the basari famous Russian Salad “Olivier” with the addition of chopped cubed chicken.

A good potato salad is a great addition to a summer meal, and I actually enjoy potato salad a lot over Pesah. The above recipes are great for Pesah, except you’d want to leave the mustard out if you’re Ashkenaz and you’d want to use a non-kitniyot oil. And you’d want to leave peas out to, if you don’t eat kitniyot.

The Igrot Moshe paskened that watches ought not to be worn on shabbat (OC 1:111). Plenty of people here in Brooklyn do wear gold watches on shabbat, since it is understood that such watches function like a takhshit and not for purely functional reasons, which would be assur. Thus, many poskim would say not to wear a watch unless you’d wear it even if the battery were dead.

The vast majority in kollelim, especially in Eretz Yisrael, do not learn with any emphasis on bekiut or actually amassing much torah knowledge. The Torah admonishes in many places that torah without an honest day’s work is fruitless. See Avot 2:2- “Rabban Gamliel the son of Rabbi Yehuda the Prince said, Torah study is good with a worldly occupation, because the exertion put into both of them makes one forget sin. All Torah without work will ultimately result in desolation and will cause sinfulness.”

Most people in kollelim don’t get semikha because semikha isn’t seen as inherently conducive to the goal of “torah lishma” promoted in the Litvish velt. The Hafetz Hayyim, zt”l, didn’t even have semikha until he required it for administrative purposes.

I’d recommend using sesame seeds in the panko to give it a more Asian flavor.

Oomis, can you share the coconut rice recipe?

Their bbq is absolutely excellent. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing them at many local events here in the city.

The issur of eating tzli esh by the seder is incumbent upon the minhag hamakom. Regardless, a person could eat grilled fruits or vegetables, fish, Sephardim can have grilled corn on the cob, etc.

Rambam’s psak that a woman who refuses to make her husband’s bed, nurse his children, feed his ox, etc. ought to be compelled through use of the rod is also for a different time period.

It’s essentially a frum English pidgin language that incorporates stylistic and other elements from Yiddish, Lashon haGemara, and Hebrew.

It means that all people have a spark of Divinity within them and an intimation of immortality. All souls stem from G-d and will ultimately find their way back to Him because all souls belong to Him, due to all souls containing a spark of the Divine with them.

I don’t think Adelson is Orthodox, although he finances a lot of causes that many frum Jews hold by. And James Tisch is on the board of the Mesorah Foundation, which gave the world the Artscroll Gemara. His name is printed at the beginning of each Artscroll Shas volume.

You can teach in a medical school without being a medical doctor, in the capacity of public health, health education, social work, psychology, or any other host of fields.

How about going into Health Education? I hold very much of any health-related professions. An EdD or a DrPH or even PhD in the field of Public Health would be a great way to teach in a medical school or in a public health program.

Your pernicious worldview is obvious, Yitzchok M.

The Haredim have invented a strawman in their minds. They perceive a conspiracy against them that doesn’t exist.

Asking people to follow the law and act like normal, civilized, honorable citizens is not an attack against your way of life.

I never saw any conclusive historical proof or evidence that Rashi’s daughters wore tefillin.

The Gemara does say that Mihal bat Shaul haMelekh wore tefillin and that the hakhamim didn’t object (Eruvin 96a). Amazes me how so many people nowadays object to the Gemara’s psak, “Nashim somhot reshut,” that women can perform mitzvot from which they are patur).

If you look at this psakim on kashrut, his views on minhagim, etc. it becomes obvious that he’s very much true to the Gemara, Rambam, and Maran haMehaber. His approach is a classic Sephardic one, and his psakim are actually quite sensible. I separate Hakham Ovadia the posek from Hakham Ovadia the politician.

I care about children. I don’t like seeing children being infected with herpes, r”l, and neither do I like seeing children being abused or molested (and their abusers given a free pass), nor being the victims of poor parenting choices not to vaccinate or not to feed adequate fruits and vegetables. Helping people make healthy choices and giving others the knowledge to take wellness into their own hands is what I feel called to do.

Quality produce, kosher cheeses, spices, oils, vinegars, proteins, etc. are not cheap.

It’s like a Breslov Na Nach kippah, only without any writing. Large, white, knitted, with a little peak on top, and worn by a few Yerushalmi hasidim.