Jewish Entertainment

San Jose Schools Join San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies in Birthday Celebration

San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies and the San Jose Jewish Film Festival have teamed up with the San Jose Schools in an event to celebrate the San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies twenty first year. The celebration event also includes the premiere of the film “Beethoven’s Hair” at the San Jose Jewish Film Festival. This will be an event for the whole community held in downtown San Jose in October.

The 2006 San Jose Jewish Film Festival will be the central event and is where the film “Beethoven’s Hair” will be shown. This film follows the perilous journey across 179 and two continents of a lock of Beethoven’s hair. In 1827, a lock of hair was clipped from Beethoven on his deathbed. This lock of hair can now be found in the San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies. The film “Beethoven’s Hair” examines how the lock of hair was passed from generation to generation and how it survived the Holocaust and World War II.

The San Jose Jewish Film Festival will host a fundraiser and celebration event near the end of October. At this event, which will be held at the Martin Luther King Jr. library, all participants will screen a private viewing of the film “Beethoven’s Hair” and meet the director Larry Weinstein for a question and answer discussion about the film. The author of the original book “Beethoven’s Hair”, the source for the film, will also be in attendance. Russell Martin will sign complimentary copies of his book and speak at the event. Everyone at this event will receive a private tour of the San Jose State University’s Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies, which has in its collection numerous personal letters and musical compositions written by Beethoven along with the previously mentioned lock of hair clipped right from his head.

San Jose Schools Beethoven Essay Contest

For its part in the birthday celebration event, the San Jose Schools have created a special essay competition. The person behind the essay contest is the Assistant Superintendent of San Jose Schools, Dr. Dr. Bill Erlendson. Dr. Erlendson believes that music appreciation is an important facet in the education of all San Jose Schools’ students. The essay contest will be open to almost 30,000 students in grades fourth through twelfth. The main idea behind the essay is that Beethoven had a huge impact on the musical world and hopefully this essay contest will help to raise the students’ awareness about the importance of music in their lives.

For the San Jose Schools’ Beethoven Essay Contest participating students must write at least 250 words about one of four topics. The four choices are: 1. What important lessons did Beethoven’s life teach us?
2. How did Beethoven change music history?
3. How was Beethoven’s life different from/the same as Mozart’s?
4. Beethoven was inspired by nature and social events. What things inspire
you to do a better job?
The Beethoven essays are due September 29, 2006. One grand prize winner, from each level of elementary, middle and high school, will attended the private screening of “Beethoven’s Hair”. While the five first place winners will receive tickets to the public screenings at the 2006 San Jose Jewish Film Festival.

Stacy Andell
http://www.articlesbase.com/k-12-education-articles/san-jose-schools-celebrate-beethoven-with-essay-contest-62274.html

BS”D

The Secret of Getting Free

“The hurrieder I go, the behinder I get.” Anonymous

SO MUCH TO DO – SO LITTLE TIME

Cell phones. Email. Video conferencing. The World Wide Web.

A couple of decades ago, who could have imagined the world we
take for granted today?

With such instantaneous access to information and communication,
we can do lots of things at once. Obviously, this means we can
accomplish much more in much less time. And this in turn leaves
us with much more satisfaction and fulfillment, as well as more
time to enjoy it.

Right?

TECHNOLOGICAL MIRACLES – A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD

These technological miracles have made things possible that were
never even imaginable before. But at the same time they have
created an intense pressure to have more, do more and be more.

It used to be that we would compare ourselves to the Jones’s who
lived down the block. The pressure of keeping up with the
Jones’s was stressful enough. Now we probably don’t even have
the time to get to know our neighbors the Jones’s, but we are
aware of the Smiths who built that big, beautiful house with the
pool a few blocks away. And we notice the mansions, the
expensive cars, the flashy careers, the personal trainers, the
perfect bodies, unlined faces, fat wallets, flat stomachs and
hot love lives of the people we see in the movies, on
television, in novels and magazines.

THE SLAVERY OF HAVING IT ALL

“YOU CAN HAVE IT ALL!” they scream out at you – ” and if you
don’t, there’s something wrong with you and your life. Just buy
this (gadget, car, self-help book…) and you’ll feel the way you
long to feel!”

“You can have it all – and you would if you just got off your
lazy incompetent, unlucky behind and do what it takes! Just
start this (business, diet, workout regimen) – and then your
life will start being what it should be!”

Bombarded from every direction, we can hardly help but respond.
We try harder, run faster and work longer, racing at breakneck
speed like mad hamsters on the wheel from hell.

No one expects to keep running forever. We all intend to stop -
just as soon as we get where we’re going. When we’re satisfied
with where we are.

The unfortunate paradox is: the faster you run and the more you
do, the less satisfied you will probably be.

Here’s the secret: There’s nowhere to get. It doesn’t work that
way. Life doesn’t stand still and let us take shots at it until
we hit the bullseye and win the prize. Life is a moving target.

WE LIVE IN UNIQUE TIMES

We live in unique times – times in which we actually can
accomplish far more, in quantity and quality, than ever before.
This in itself is a wonderful thing.

So where are we going wrong?

We have begun to believe that because we can accomplish, we
must. That if something desirable exists, and we don’t have it,
we can’t be fulfilled. That if there’s some standard out there,
in whatever area of life, and we don’t meet it, we’ve failed.

So, first we have to accomplish it all, have it all, ‘make it’,
and then we can relax, kick back, and start to be ourselves.

Within this paradigm, instead of providing us with freedom, our
increased opportunities are turning us into slaves.

“HAVING IT ALL” IS NOT THE POINT

You can work on having the right body – the kind we see in all
the magazines and movies – but even if you do manage to succeed
in dieting and exercising yourself to perfection – an unlikely
prospect for most of us – you will inevitably age and lose the
perfection you tried so hard to create.

You can work on making the right amount of money – and you may
or may not succeed. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with money,
in and of itself. If used in the right ways, money can be a
wonderful thing. But interestingly, the people who enjoy the
most money and ‘success’ – celebrities – often have the least
enduring satisfaction in life, as evidenced by their heavy drug
use and high divorce rates.

You can work on acquiring the right house, sometimes a bigger
one than you can afford, even though by the time you get it – if
you ever do – your kids may be grown and it may be time to
downsize; to get rid of all the stuff you’ve accumulated by the
sweat of your brow.

Or, you can work on finding the perfect love – the kind you read
about in novels and see on film. The problem is that in real
life people aren’t always slick, polished, adoring, witty and
immortal. They get angry, pass gas, have bad breath, get
wrinkles, complain, bore us and get disillusioned with us, too.

THE SECRET OF FREEDOM: MANNA FROM HEAVEN

Between the liberation from slavery in Egypt and entering into
the Promised Land, there was a forty-year period where the
Jewish people wandered through the desert. That forty-year
period provided a necessary transition between slavery and
freedom, between exile and redemption.

In the desert there was nothing to eat. So, G-d provided a
special food – manna – that fell from Heaven each day. The
people in the desert didn’t have to do anything to make the
manna appear. All they had to do was go out to the field and
collect it.

And, no matter how much or how little a person picked up, when
he got home, he always had exactly the right amount of manna to
satisfy him for that day. No more and no less.

The manna was miraculous. And, unlike many miracles, its
miraculous nature was too obvious to mistake. Because it was
impossible to collect too much or too little, it was glaringly
obvious to everyone that their survival was directly in the
hands of Heaven.

True, each person had to do his part – to go out and collect his
manna for the day – but that was it.

FROM SLAVERY TO FREEDOM

Kabbalah explains that this miraculous way of being holds an
essential message for us today.

We are living through the climax of history, a time predicted by
the prophets of long ago. During this time we, too, are making a
transition between slavery and freedom, between exile and
redemption. Our task is to reconnect with our Creator, our own
Divine essence, our authentic power and purpose, and each other.

Because of the unique nature of these times, you have access to
an entirely new level of your soul and its innate powers -
powers like freedom, creativity, purpose, joy and fulfillment.

But paradoxically, these powers cannot be accessed by trying
harder and running faster. Your soul’s self-expression cannot be
based on the illusion that your survival – and your success – is
entirely up to you. No matter what the Jones’s or the Smiths
believe, your freedom and fulfillment won’t come out of the mad
rush to ‘have it all’.

DO YOU WANT TO BE FREE?

If I am not for myself, who will be for me? If I am only for
myself, what am I? And if not now, when? (Rabbi Hillel, Ethics
of the Fathers)

As human beings we have an innate drive to create, to make
things happen, to make a difference. You do that, in one way or
another, with every action you take. The important question is:
Do you do it as a free person or as a slave?

We all want to be free. Free from debt. Free from worry. Free
from fat. Free from stress. But true freedom doesn’t come from
something outside of yourself. If you are depending on that
something to make you free, you’re already a slave.

True freedom comes from the inside – from a deep and powerful
connection to who you truly are and why you’re here. From that
place, connected to the Source, you can create things you never
thought possible. You can generate miracles in your own life and
in the lives of others.

When you’re a slave you are dependent on other people and
outside circumstances for your well-being – for your very
survival. You’re full of needs. Without having those needs met
you simply can’t be who you truly are. And since it’s impossible
to ‘have it all” – you remain a slave.

When you’re free, you may still want things. And you can
certainly strive to make things happen. But as a desire, not as
a need. As an expression of who you authentically are.

Like the Jews in the desert, you will still have to go out to
the field each day to collect your portion of manna. But you can
do it peacefully, happily, confidently, trustingly. Not like a
slave. Like someone who’s free.

THE KEY TO FREEDOM

The key to freedom is to know that you are here on earth as a
soul in a body. To know that you are here for a reason, with a
mission, a mission that can be carried out by you and you alone.
And last but certainly not least, to know that G-d is lovingly
supervising every moment of your life, providing you with the
precise circumstances – both gifts and challenges – that will
help you to fulfill that mission.

If you start from this premise, then nothing can ever be wrong.
Regardless of what your life looks like today, it’s simply the
perfect starting point for your soul’s self-expression. It’s an
opportunity to create joy, power, love, connection, peace,
trust, intimacy, generosity – or whatever it is that you crave
when you’re authentically you.

And when you live life from that place of freedom – miracles
inevitably happen.

© 2005 Shifra Hendrie, www.KabbalahOfTransformation.com

Shifra Hendrie
http://www.articlesbase.com/motivational-articles/the-secret-of-getting-free-2000.html

Prague, located in central Europe is a well recognized tourist destination, which has a few most extensive collections of art and culture include:

•    Charles Bridge: It demonstrates fantastic architecture and river views that keep the visitors engaged

•    Bertramka Mozart Museum: Romantic summer residence of W.A. Mozart’s friends, the Duseks, a couple of leading Czech musicians has now turned in museum

•    Astronomical Clock: It makes known the respectful regard that people of the past felt for the heavenly order.

•    Old Town Hall Tower: One of the most terrific buildings in Prague, built in 1338

•    Dancing House: A new, glass building delimited by historic architecture

In fact, the Old Town with its Gothic church spires, the elegant ribbon of river Vitava that winds through the city and memorialized Jewish quarter preserve a miraculous and unforgettable sagacity of the past. There are a number of pubs, restaurants, fast-food corners, beauty parlours, malls, multiplex cinemas and many more to make your holidays an unforgettable experience.

When you make plans to visit the city, one of the most frequent concerns comes in your mind is luxury accommodation in an area that is secure, central and close to the main tourist attractions. Prague apartments are suitable for you that fulfill all the mentioned requirements. 

Luxury accommodation in Prague apartments

If you want to stay in Prague without any fuss, then before starting your journey, book Prague apartments through an online booking site. These Prague apartments are located in the centre of the city together with an assortment of facilities.

Prague apartments have all the amenities you can possibly expect into an efficiency apartment include:

•    Telephone, television, air condition, internet connection and many others

•    Modular kitchen where you can prepare food and enjoy hot coffee

•    Bathroom with sufficient towels, capacious tub, washer, dryer, ironing board, central heating, adequate hot water and many more

•    Luxury sleeping arrangements with comfortable beds as well as foldout sofa beds

Prague apartments are preferred by budget-conscious tourists because of their luxury accommodation, which is a source of additional space, comfort, sovereignty and flexibility if compared to luxury hotels. When you stay in Prague apartments, definitely you will feel as you are in your home away from home. In other words, after staying in Prague apartments, you will congratulate yourself on your luck for luxury accommodation and memorable tour.

Article Manager
http://www.articlesbase.com/destinations-articles/prague-apartments-a-home-away-from-home-752488.html

To children, Easter means oversized bunnies bearing Easter Baskets full of goodies. To adults, it may be an excuse to wear their best Spring outfits and have a nice sit-down dinner with family and relations, or it may be a solemn religious celebration.

In fact, the holiday known as Easter seems to have had religious significance for thousands of years across cultures from ancient Babylon to early modern England but exactly what that significance was depended on the religion you happened to be following.

Most cultures in the northern hemisphere have had some type of celebration of the return of spring. In fact, the Persian New Year is celebrated on the date of the spring equinox, as was that of the ancient Romans. One theory is that the word “Easter refers to the fertility goddess of the Babylonians, who was known as Ishtar. However, there is no solid linguistic link to prove a connection, particularly since Ishtar was eventually identified with the Greek Aphrodite, goddess of female sexuality.

A more likely explanation associates Easter with the ancient Anglo-Saxon month of Eostremonat, corresponding roughly to modern late March and early April. While some link the festival to a Germanic goddess named Eostre, there is little historical evidence that a goddess by this name was ever worshipped. It is more likely that Eostre refers to the east and sunrise and was simply a celebration of spring and the beginning of the agricultural year. Rabbits the most fecund of creatures and eggs have long been symbols of fertility and a good harvest, so it is not surprising that these are associated with the holiday, and are still presented as Easter gifts.

The Christian holiday of Easter that celebrates the resurrection of Yeshua ben-Yosef, generally acknowledged as the founder of Christianty, is closely tied to the Jewish holiday of Passover, or Pesach. In fact, the Last Supper was actually a seder a special meal celebrating the exodus of the Hebrews from Egypt. As Christianity was spread by missionaries throughout pagan Europe in the early years of the Common Era, it absorbed many pagan traditions as it gained converts. Today, some Christian sects reject Easter because of its pagan overtones.

In the Roman Catholic church, Easter not only marks the resurrection, but also the end of a forty-day period of fasting and self-denial known as Lent, which begins the day after Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday. This celebration, also known in Latin America as Carnival, is meant as a last chance to party and over-indulge before the observance of Lent.

As a secular holiday however, Easter remains as popular as ever especially with children receiving Easter gift baskets enjoying Easter egg hunts an appropriate welcome of Spring.

Anne Harvester
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-and-family-articles/easter-history-118650.html

Excerpt
The following is an excerpt from the book Not In Kansas Anymore
by Christine Wicker
Published by HarperSanFrancisco; September 2006;$13.95US/$17.95CAN; 0-06-074115-5
Copyright © 2006 Christine Wicker

2.

Eat Only Chicken the Day of the Game

I don’t believe in magic, of course. Hardly anybody does, but we all live by it. It permeates our lives every day, and we wouldn’t give it up for all the science on earth. Most of us can’t. We can’t because we aren’t aware of how completely we live within its thrall. Who can break a bond they don’t know exists?

My first magical lesson came when I was five. I was playing with the crippled girl who lived down the street. We didn’t like each other much, but being the only children in the neighborhood, we made do with each other in a grudging, bickering way. At one point in our play she took two bananas off the kitchen counter and told me to pick the one I wanted. I wanted the bigger one. I knew I shouldn’t take the big banana. To take it from a crippled girl would be especially bad. But I wanted it. So I took it.

At this point, in defense of myself, I’d like to mention that I was cross-eyed. I’m not saying that cross-eyed trumps crippled, and to be completely truthful, it wasn’t much of a factor in my case — morally speaking, I mean — because I didn’t know I was cross-eyed. No one had mentioned it, and I wasn’t an observant child.

I might have forgotten about the bananas by now except that mine had a big brown soft spot in it that ran all the way down the side. About two inches of my banana was edible. Her banana was perfect, and she ate it while I watched. If I had been generous, she would have been eating the rotten banana.

I knew what this meant. Somebody was watching, keeping score. It was God maybe. Who it was didn’t matter. What mattered was that I got the message. I never have taken the big banana again. I’ve never taken the biggest piece of chicken or the last scoop of mashed potatoes or the cookie with the most chocolate chips. I’ve never pushed anybody aside at the bargain table. I say to myself that I don’t care as much about such things. I don’t want them as much as other people do, but that’s not the truth. The truth is that I am still ruled by the bad magic of the big banana.

I was smart enough not to tell anybody in my family about it. If I had, they would have given me the horselaugh and brayed, “Taught you a lesson, huh?” I didn’t call this experience magical even to myself, but it clearly was, just as magical as that bad witch who wasn’t invited to the party and got so mad that she cursed poor little Sleeping Beauty.

It was a curse for sure. Luckily the big banana curse was a minor, manageable spell, evoked by my behavior and not by a capricious universe. The behavior it evoked dovetailed well with my Christian upbringing. But the lesson of the banana was deeper even than Christian teachings because it didn’t have to be taught. It had been experienced, and it seemed to affirm something basic in the fabric of reality. It didn’t, of course. But it seemed to.

Life went on. My eye got fixed, sort of. The doctors call it satisfactory. It turns outward a little instead of inward a lot. It hasn’t been much of a handicap, as far as I know, and it has helped me
some. I understand outsiders in a way that not everybody does. Or I try to. Not because I’m smarter or more sensitive, but I know how it feels to be among those who can be summed up with one word of physical attribute. There are lots of them — cross-eyed, fat, crippled, bald, weak-chinned, spastic, crazy — and knowing what that feels like makes me listen harder. Or try to. If I wanted to make it a joke, I’d say I look at the world askance. Nobody who knows me would disagree with that.

I grew up. I became a big-city newspaper reporter, which is not a hopeful or fanciful or magical profession. If anybody had asked me two years ago to describe the age we live in, I’d have painted a picture right in line with what the world’s wise thinkers expected of me, except that it would be utterly dismal.

I’d have said science is our true God. I’d have said that we live in a world of marvels gone stale, adrift in an empty cosmos. We hear no voices but our own. We believe no omens, listen to no oracles. If otherworldly visions come to us, we close our eyes. And we never, ever think that we might have some great task, noble destiny, or grand calling. Such thoughts are generally believed to indicate a need for medication.

That’s how lots of people would describe life, but if an extraterrestrial were to watch these nonbelievers as they go about their lives, it would become quite clear that they do believe in much more than a material, soulless world. I first began to know about these hidden beliefs because I wrote a book on Lily Dale, a western New York community of Spiritualists where people have been talking to the dead for five generations. I wrote the book because I thought people with such extravagant ideas were rare, an oddity, something strange that would excite wonder. What a chucklehead.

Whether the dead talk back is a matter of contention, of course. I was careful about that, not wanting to be branded a crazy. But it didn’t matter. In writing the book, I’d been transformed. I’d become a person who could be told things. People all over the country started coming up to me in bookstores, at meetings, during parties to tell me stories they didn’t usually share with strangers.

They’d often start by glancing to each side. They would shrug as if they weren’t to be held responsible for what was coming. Then they’d say, “I don’t know what this means,” or, “I’m just going to tell you what happened.” One by one they came, butchers and bakers and candlestick makers. Few would have described themselves as believers in magic.

Once, for instance, I was in a Bible Belt state with a group of women who raise charitable funds for children’s hospitals. I talked about my book on the town that talks to the dead. When the talk turned to spirituality, heads nodded about the room as several women attested to their strong belief in Jesus Christ as their own personal, living savior and to their complete reliance on the Bible as the direct word of God, suitable for any occasion. I thought, Oh, boy. I hope they don’t go to praying and try to save me. I hadn’t needed to worry. They finished dessert, and then they lined up to tell me things.

“My mother read tea leaves all her life. If a relative was about to die, she always knew it,” said one. Another told me that her husband had second sight. His whole family had witnessed it.

The eighty-year-old former president of the group reached into her bosom to pull out a silver cross with a little charm next to it.

“Know what this is?” she asked.

“It’s the evil eye,” I said. According to magical theory, the eye on her charm would stare down the evil eye if it were directed toward her.

“Evil eye. That’s right. I’m Greek. All the Greeks wear them. Even the children.”

A blond woman of middle years asked, “Have you ever known anyone who had the evil eye put on them?”

“No,” I said.

“Well, someone put it on my daughter,” she said.

The daughter was about eighteen months old. She and her family were strolling along a New Jersey beachfront boardwalk when a man approached them. He was an actor from a fun house and was dressed in a monk’s robe. He had a rope around his waist. From it hung a cross, which he was twirling.

“Oh, what a beautiful child,” he said, looking intently at their daughter. Then he began to follow the family, continuing to stare at the little girl.

The man’s focus was so strange and his tone so eerie that the father turned the child’s stroller around and began pushing it away from the man, faster and faster until the family was practically running to escape. That night the child fell ill. She had a high fever and began throwing up. The next day she was still sick and crying constantly. A child who had always loved men, now she wouldn’t go to any of the men in the family. The mother’s sister had been on the boardwalk when the actor approached, and she was troubled by his actions. She called their aunt, who was of Polish heritage.

“He’s put the evil eye on her,” the aunt said. “You’ll have to remove it.” The mother’s sister was to take four straws from a broom and throw them over her shoulder into the corners of the room as she said a litany of Polish words. She was then to take a fifth straw, burn it with a wooden match, and drop it into a glass of water. They were to give the baby a spoonful of water from the glass.

“Make sure you do exactly what I told you,” she said, “and don’t let anyone who doesn’t believe be in the room when you do this.”

The mother, who didn’t know Polish, was so frightened that she would foul up and kill her daughter that she couldn’t do the spell. So her sister did it. The baby fell asleep immediately and slept four hours. When she awoke, the fever was gone and so was her fear of men.

“Are you telling me the truth?” I demanded. But I knew she was. She was as wholesome as Thanksgiving dinner and probably sat in the front pew of the Baptist church every Sunday.

Kids upchucking in the night and then getting better the next day isn’t all that unusual, but I didn’t say so because she knew that already and my saying it would have missed the point. The point of the story was that evil is alive, and good can defeat it in magical ways. It’s a good story, and the last part makes it better. No one told the little girl about that night, and she was too young to remember, but for the rest of her childhood she feared men in monk’s robes and would cry whenever she saw them.

As I heard a hundred tales and more, I also began to see magic everywhere, planted deep in the stuff of everyday life and flourishing. Britney Spears appeared on the cover of Entertainment Weekly wearing a red Kabbalah cord on her wrist. Paris Hilton had one, and so did Madonna, who adopted the name Esther to go along with her new faith in Jewish mysticism. The cords, which deflect the evil eye, were so popular that the Kabbalah Centre, where the stars go for instruction, tried to patent the string, sold for $26 to $36. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office declined that application.

Go into any large bookstore in America and you’ll find several books on regional ghosts and haunted places. Ghost hunters and ghost busters work all over the country. E- Bay sells haunted dolls and teddy bears. One week’s auction offered a haunted tuning fork, a haunted milking stool, a haunted gravestone rubbing, a haunted blanket, and a haunted bathtub.

Magic also penetrates our lives in ways that are quite mundane. It’s at the car repair shop when the engine stops pinging as soon as the mechanic appears and begins to ping again only when you pull out onto the street. It’s in the beauty salons when hair that spikes about your head like a scarecrow’s coiffure turns supple and silky on the day of the appointment. It’s at the restaurant when diners arrive only after the waiter sits down with his own plate and smokers’ food comes only after they’ve lit up.

You’ve heard of voodoo economics perhaps? Money magic is the most pervasive of all. Of course it would be, since money itself is the ultimate magic, a piece of paper that can do everything. Everyone wants good money magic, a way to win the lottery, gambling luck, an unexpected check in the mail, but the money magic of everyday life is more often bad. Win some money, get a bonus, have a little inheritance, and a major appliance will go out, the kid will get sick, a tire will go flat. Once you’re as poor as you were before the money arrived, life returns to normal. It’s as though there’s some kind of balance sheet that makes sure we stay at exactly the same level of prosperity all the time.

These are matters of life’s proceeding that hardly need to be commented on. They’re so common that they show up in jokes, and no one looks bewildered or wonders what’s being talked about. Trot out all the scientists you want, arm them with a million statistics. It won’t do any good. We know these things.

I often heard people talking about inanimate objects as though they were alive and powerful. This can opener never works for me, someone might say, or the bus always comes early when I’m running late. Or I always have to kick the machine before it will start. Or this computer only works for Mark — it hates the rest of us. Or it never rains when you’ve got an umbrella. No one is serious, you say? Maybe not, or maybe they’re whistling in the dark. It doesn’t matter which because language creates reality. What we name is what we notice, and that’s another argument for the inherent strength of magic. We’ve been programmed to ignore as much of it as we can, and still it pops up.

Copyright © 2006 Christine Wicker

Christine Wicker
http://www.articlesbase.com/art-and-entertainment-articles/eat-only-chicken-the-day-of-the-game-61848.html

Pitigliano is a small town in Italy, situated south of Florence and north of Rome. Pitigliano is situated on the top of a steep tuff of a volcanic magma.

Pitigliano was considered the home of Jews. They shared the habitat with the gentile population of the town in a harmonious manner and together contributed for the cultural and social development of both communities. The village landscape reminds you of the Jerusalem city. The tuff rock bears unison with the medieval structures. The picturesque of the emerging grayish cluster of buildings from the dark woods brings the memory of the days of the Jewish community in this small religious city. Its culture and civilization is a tribute to the enduring devotion of the minority Jewish community towards this city.

The natural attractions of Pitigliano are the wild forest surrounding the cliff and the creeks that are developed into deep valleys. The largest Italian lake, Lake Bolsena is situated near Pitigliano. The landscape of Pitigliano is beautified with Mount Amiata, a 1738-meter high volcano that was separated from it long time ago. The Maremma coast extends 50 kilometers from Pitigliano with beautiful beaches that are not invaded by the human activities.

The city’s cultural establishments prove the dedication of the Jewish community towards the development of the culture. The Jewish University of Pitigliano was established during the flourishing days of the community in this small city.

Other attractions of Pitigliano are the following.

The Orsini-Castle- This medieval castle is situated at the entrance of the town. There is an archeological museum inside the Orsini Castle that recollects the ancient Jewish culture and activities.

The Orsini Park: Situated on the road to Sorano is the park that was created towards the end of 16th century. The notable features of the park are the statues and stone seats that are carved from the tuff stones.

Museum of the Giubbonaia – This unique museum is characterized by its collection of agricultural and household tools that were used in the ancient days. There is a labyrinth that takes you to the underground through the foundation of the museum. The labyrinth showcases the architectural talents that the Jews possessed in those days.

Piazza: There is a chapel inside the Piazza that had a collection of frescos. As time and history changed, the Piazza was modified, and now its highlights are the two bars, Bar Centrale and the Bar Italia that rise to the vicinity leaving the chapel underneath.

Synagogue: It is one of the historical remnants of the Jewish culture. It is located under the cathedral in the former entrance to the city via Zuccarelli.

The medieval painters were deeply influenced by the city of Pitigliano, especially its deep and winding streets that lead the city towards the valley. These streets are dug out from the steep tuff, with their walls more than 10 meters high.

Pitigliano bears a romantic tone with lots of memories of its ancestors, who made it a castle of hope. So if you are a connoisseur of medieval culture and art, come and join the league of those famous artists who were deeply influenced by this city.

Giulio Detti
http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/pitigliano-the-little-jerusalem-in-maremma-125022.html

Israeli artist Adina plastelina designs fashion and Jewish Jewelry in her studio in old Jaffa, Israel.
http://www.canaan-online.com/170209

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In December, I performed in the 17th annual Kung Pao Kosher Comedy shows in San Francisco: Jewish comedy at a Chinese restaurant over Christmas. 8 shows in 4 nights. http://www.koshercomedy.com

This is a short local TV appearance to promote the shows – on KRON4 with Henry Tenenbaum.

The shows also featured Jonathan Katz (Dr. Katz!), Hilary Schwartz, and event producer Lisa Geduldig.

Science Comedian Brian Malow: http://www.sciencecomedian.com
http://www.twitter.com/sciencecomedian

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Technorati Tags: Area, Asia, Bay, Brian, Chinatown, Chinese, comedian, comedy, food, Francisco, Geduldig, Henry, Hilary, humor, jew, Jewish, Jonathan, Katz, Kosher, KRON4, Kung, Lisa, Malow, new, Pao, San, Schwartz, science, SF, stand, standup, Tenenbaum, up