The rabbi who had been working with Charley’s family was forced to leave when Charley — suffering from untreatable cancer — chose to schedule “death with dignity” for the following Tuesday. That rabbi’s rabbinical union dictated that they not officiate. “I got you,” I tell Norman when he, Charley, and I are on a […]

My assessment of the Apple Watch—get it for this singular feature: its ability to ping your phone—sold both my neighbor Betsy and my mom on getting theirs. Betsy and I are doing facetime. We are co-sleuthing with Google: How to get notifications on an iPhone and iWatch simultaneously. I read, step by step, as Betsy

  After hearing the cycle of the alarm clock and snooze button from 7:00 until now, 7:32, I open her shades and curtain. “Time to get up,” I coo, trying to soften the transition from delicious sleep to preparing for school. She orients herself to the room and declares, “I need eight more minutes of

George Carlin had a routine about how anyone who drives faster than you is a maniac and anyone who drives slower is an idiot. “It’s surprising,” the comic mused, “we get anywhere at all with all these maniacs and idiots on the road.” I’m thinking about with whom we compare ourselves. Our delight with our abilities

  There are difficult things to think about when it comes to starting a new religion. Getting started with filling out the paperwork shouldn’t be one of the difficulties. Hi. I’m Rabbi Brian. I’ve been assigned to provide you with assistance. Today we will be looking at “Starting a New Religion, Section 1Eª 1-5: God

  Years ago, I wisely gifted visiting friends the large, stainless steel mandoline I had received years earlier as a wedding present. (I wrote “I received” instead of “we received ” because my beloved isn’t a cook.) “You want me to just take it? It’s beautiful. Almost new.” Zanthe exclaimed. “That sharp blade, my brain,”

  It’s raining. People think it’s always raining in Portland, but that’s not true. We have lots of moisture in the air more than 150 days a year. But it’s not always rain, like the kind for which you might use an umbrella. Right now, however, it’s coming down in My mom arrived yesterday afternoon

Dr. Robert Farrar stands at the front of the corner-windowed third-floor classroom. We are waiting for the official class time. Only then will he begin today’s talk about educational history. I look out the window at my 2003 Honda Odyssey parked a few car lengths up, off of Ventura boulevard. I’m spending a fortune to

  I flew from Los Angeles to New York to attend my friend Arthur’s rabbinic ordination.   “His seminary isn’t legitimate,” I hear from some colleagues. “You shouldn’t go,” I’m told.   I suspect, and time will prove this to be true, I will lose some rabbi friends because I choose to attend the ordination