songbird's crazy world

 In the Book of Exodus we are told that the Israelites fled Egypt in such haste that they could not wait for the bread to rise, but baked it while still flat.   From this comes the tradition of eating matzoh during Passover.  Matzoh is made by mixing flour and water, and baking it within 18 minutes so that it does not have the chance to rise. So on Passover Jews are not permitted to eat any grain-based products that have the potential to rise.  Nothing made with wheat, barley, rye, oats or spelt may be consumed.  No bread, no cake, no pasta…  What most Jews use instead?  Matzoh meal.  It’s basically matzoh ground into a fine powder, which can be used instead of flour or bread crumbs.  Matzoh balls are made with matzoh meal. Want to make a meatloaf?  Use matzoh meal as a binder.  Dredge chicken cutlets in matzoh meal and fry them.  My mother used to make matzoh meal pancakes. But there is a small group of Jews who think using ma...

 Tonight we will celebrate the first night of Passover, one of the most important holidays on the Jewish calendar. Passover commemorates the Exodus from Egypt, which led to the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai, the central themes of Jewish theology. The rituals of Passover, focus on the home and family, not the synagogue.  Even the most non-observant Jews make some attempt to acknowledge Passover and its importance to our history and our culture.   If you’ve been reading this blog for awhile, you know how much this holiday means to me.  So many traditions, so many memories.  My grandmother and aunt cooking all our favorites, my father leading the Seder, my grandfather’s Seder plate.  Over the years the faces at the table have changed, but the rituals remain.   In Yiddish we wish each other a ziezen Pesach. In Hebrew we say chag Pesach saneach. And in English  Happy Passover. .

 Weekend walk around the neighborhood, signs of spring My favorite bird Easter is coming But that one house Last year they left the Christmas stuff up until Goid Friday. Interesting flag Spring flowers  The ubiquitous planes And the ever-present water tower And a new McMansion in the works

 So I am working a suburban office park.  Not much to see in the area, just a bunch of office buildings and parking lots.   But we do have an area where I can walk.  The sidewalk completely surrounds my building.  And the skies above …we’re four miles from Republic Airport, as I’ve said, so we get to see small planes and corporate jets. Things are starting to grow, but you can tell that the landscapers haven’t begun spring cleanup yet, We have a few places to sit and eat lunch, And yes, I saw a few planes.

Mar  30th   the last three days of March are known as “ Borrowing Days “. Share stormy weather inspired song picks. Let’s go for the obvious first  Keeping it in the classic movie vein I love to go to concerts at the Jones Beach Theater.  It’s an outdoor venue. Rain doesn’t matter, the show must go on despite the weather.  Unless there’s thunder and lightning, that’s too dangerous. On one memorable evening we sat in the rain, waiting for the show to begin.  And over the loud speakers we heard every possible rock song about rain. Here are a few they played And we’ll end with one last stormy song …

Yet another “selfie”  

Early spring weather keeps you guessing.  One day it’s 65°F, the next it drops down to 45°.  I’m starting to pack away my winter clothes, but I’m still keeping a few things around.  We’re not quite at the “perfect date” stage. Can you believe that movie is 26 years old? I’m not sure how ‘perfect’ April 25th will be this year, we’ll be in Florida… Though I’m happy to say the improved weather encouraged my neighbors to finally put away their Christmas decorations.  Well, except for one house … last year those folks left Christmas decorations up until Good Friday.  We will see what happens this week .., And im in my happy place … baseball season is here, and so far the Mets have not disappointed.  Yeah, I know, they’ve played only one game so far … but it was a great game! Spring means Passover is coming.  The family will be at Becca’s for the first Seder, and Drew and I are hosting the second Seder for our friends.  So we’ve done a lot of supermarke...

  Indian Lake Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love to  answer the questions, however, and here is today's questions! Saturday 9: Indian Lake (1968) Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it  here . 1) In this song, a family gets on a bus and heads off on vacation. Think about the last trip you took. Did you travel by car, bus, train, boat, or plane? Road trip last fall, we drove from Long Island, NY to Williamsburg, VA.  We both love history, so Colonial Williamsburg is an amazing place to explore our country’s history. 2) Once they get to Indian Lake, they swim, have a picnic and go canoeing. Are y...

 

Spring skies #skywatchfriday

 Back in February 2020, I was working in lower Manhattan and hating the commute from Long Island.   So I looked for, and found, a job on Long Island.  Start date Monday March 23.   I was so excited!  Back then most jobs were “in office” five days a week.  So I decided to upgrade my work wardrobe.  I went shopping for new clothes, shoes, etc.   And then, as you know, in March 2020 all hell broke loose.   My first day on the job was the day they sent everyone home to work remotely.  I was a remote worker for almost six years.  I never wore all those new clothes.    No need.  And when I lost all that weight, I gave the clothes away.   Well, I changed jobs again in December 2025,  this time for a hybrid position.  Originally I was told I need to be in the office twice a week, but recently we were all told to report to the office four days a week starting April 27.   So, time for a wardrobe refresh. ...

 I’m pretty sure Jews invented the concept of”spring cleaning”.  Observant Jews clean their homes from top to bottom in anticipation of Passover.  We are forbidden to eat leavened bread and other similar foods during the holiday, forbidden to even own such foods for the 8 days of Passover.  So we clean our homes thoroughly, to get rid of the smallest crumbs. I started my spring cleaning yesterday, in my clothes closet.  (I’ll do more Passover-related cleaning closer to the holiday.) I’ve lost a bit more weight and now I have more clothes that don’t fit me anymore. So I cleaned out my closet and dresser, reorganized what was left.   We went out for dinner Saturday night.  Local Mexican place. (I’ve always loved their food, and I now I love how they identify the gluten free entrees on the menu.)  There was a bachelorette party at the next table, the bride to be was wearing a white dress and a headband with a short veil attached.   But my attent...