Weeeeee!!!! Wiiiiii!!!!

Well, I've finally done it. I bought a Wii!!!

I have been hemming and hawing for quite some time now about getting a new videogame console. I have the PS2, which I have had for about five years. I use it often (thought not much over the past few months, what with the new job and the high holidays), and have loved getting the many Guitar Hero games.

However, when I learned about the wonderful world of Wii Fit, I decided that I really had to go out and get one of these machines. Plus, Beatles:Rock Band has come out, and I really wanted a new system in order to get the most out of it.

The Wii arrived yesterday. It is beautiful, and it is so fun to use. Even navigating around the main menu is fun.

I oriented myself on Wii Fit Plus (which just came out a few days ago), and it feels so good! I am delightfully achy this morning. I enjoy its sense of humor and how encouraging it is.

So, do you have a Wii? What are you favorite games? What should I consider buying?

Chag Sukkot Sameach! Happy Sukkot!

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the temple....

We have another holiday right around the corner! Welcome to the festive holiday of Sukkot. During Sukkot, Jews build booths, or huts, called Sukkot (singular = Sukkah). We are commanded to dwell in them during the seven days of the festival (please note that Conservative and Orthodox Jews observe eight days of the festival). If the weather is good, we are encouraged to sleep, eat, study, and do all of our general, daily activities in the Sukkah.

The Sukkot remind us of our days when we were farmers, and we would have to dwell in temporary shelters along our fields at night. These huts keep us closer to the earth and the heavens above. The roof, covered by branches and leaves, is left open to the sky so that we can see the moon and stars at night.

During this festival, we shake a lulav and an etrog - made up of four species of plants that grow in Israel: Citron, Myrtle, Willow, and Palm. We shake the lulav and the etrog in E, S, W, N and up and down, symbolizing that God is all around us.

This harvest festival is a wonderful way to reconnect with the the beautiful, natural world around us. We watch the leaves starting to change colors, the weather is growing colder, and we are getting ready to hibernate for the winter. But, our tradition helps us spend time outside, out in the world, breathing the fresh air and watching the beauty around us.

Chag Sameach - Happy Holidays!!

L'shanah tovah!! Happy New Year!!!

Hello, friends! I hope you are all having a lovely autumn. For those of us Jews, we have been in the midst of the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe. These are the ten days that begin with Rosh HaShanah (the Jewish New Year) and conclude, tonight and tomorrow, with Yom Kippur (the Day of Repentance).

This is a time of reflection, contemplation, and reconnection. We are encouraged to return to our true selves - to consider our behavior over the past year and seek to do better in the coming year. We listen to the Shofar blast - the loud sound that comes from a ram's horn. It serves as a wakeup call, forcing us to reach for our highest potential as human and spiritual beings.

I hope that you all have a good and healthy 5770, and that you always feel that you can have a fresh start whenever you most need one.

For a truly new, innovative way of thinking about these ten days, please visit 10Q - they have created meaningful questions, for Jews and non-Jews alike, to contemplate over the past few days. You have the next 72 hours to complete the questions (and they remain confidential). One year from now, they will email you your answers, giving you an opportunity to see how you did this year!

L'shanah tovah tikateivu v'tichateimu - May we all be inscribed and sealed in the Book of Life for the coming year!

A Top Ten List

Hello, friends!! During my drive to work today, I heard a song on the radio that NEVER CEASES to break my heart each and every time I hear it. Thus, I have been inspired to create a top ten list: The TOP TEN SONGS THAT BREAK YOUR HEART every time you hear them (or, at least, every time I hear them....).....

1. I Can't Make You Love Me (Bonnie Raitt) - This version is the ultimate in gut-wrenching, sad, heart-breaking songs. The George Michael version is just as sad, but Bonnie takes the cake.

2. All Out of Love (Air Supply) - Ugh, that lyric, "I'm so lost without you." That says it all. And their voices are filled with such pleading...

3. More Than Words Can Say (Alias) - This was one of the first songs that I had to listen to OVER AND OVER in order to figure out the lyrics when I was younger. I would sit there with my boom box, hitting rewind and play, rewind and play, because the words moved me so.

4. I Don't Know How to Love Him (Jesus Christ Superstar soundtrack) - Though these words are sung by Mary Magdalene, she is speaking for all women baffled by their partners, not sure what to do with them.

5. Eternal Flame (The Bangles) - It's not the lyrics as much as the beautiful, lullaby quality of the song. I just can't listen without being moved to tears.

6. What it Takes (Aerosmith) - Probably a surprising choice for some of you, but I am all about Monster Ballads sometimes. "Tell me what it takes to let you go" is a thought that I have had to ponder before, and I know there is a universality to its plea.

7. Everytime (Britney Spears) - A stripped-down, simply orchestrated song that allows Britney's voice to float over the piano, singing words like, "I may have made it rain/ please forgive me/ my weakness caused you pain/ and this song's my sorry."

8. You Don't Bring Me Flowers (Neil Diamond and Barbra Streisand) - A classic song, so good for some karaoke melodrama, and it hasn't gotten me through a few breakups. "It used to be so natural/ to talk about forever / but used-to-be's don't matter anymore/ they just lay on the floor/ till we sweep them away." Those poor "used-to-be's!!!"

9. How Deep is Your Love (Bee Gees) - I really need to know!! A surprisingly deep song from the guys primarily known for lighter, disco fare. Love this song. Can't get enough.

10. In the Deep (Bird York) - A song featured heavily in the movie, Crash, this haunting piece both calms you and moves you to tears. "Thought you had all the answers to rest your heart upon. But something happens, don't see it coming, now you can't stop yourself."

What would you add?

Drum Roll, Please

I JOINED A GYM!!!!!!!

AND I WORKED OUT FOR THE FIRST TIME IN YEARS!!!!!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!

Can you tell I'm excited? I am giving Jenny Craig a break for about a month or so, just as a I transition to the new job (luckily, my weight is staying virtually the same, so not worried). But, I have really been craving a good cardio workout - isn't that crazy? I guess that it means that my body is ready for it. Have I really healed enough? I sure think so!!

So, I joined Bally's online last week, and I went to my local location (near the new synagogue so that it is easy to go from work) yesterday evening. I signed up for my free personal training session, got my official ID card, and I bought a lock. I haven't been to a gym since a little while after my car accident. For awhile there, I tried to keep going (there was this Latin Dance Class that I LOVED), but it got too painful. Eventually, I let my membership lapse. I just couldn't do it.

But, now, I am trying again. I took it really easy yesterday - 15 minutes on the elliptical machine, and 15 minutes on a recumbent bike. Felt so good to be moving my body, listening to my iPod, and taking good care of myself. I kept close eye on my back, and made sure to listen to its signals. If I started feeling any pain, I slowed down or reduced the resistance. I don't feel any pain or soreness today, so I must've done a good job!!

The location also has a pool - my FAVORITE!!! I can't wait to go swim some laps, then relax in the whirlpool. Another great new step in my recovery!!! HOORAY!!!!

A New Synagogue Home!

So excited to be the new rabbi at a wonderful congregation on Long Island (YES, I finally have my own parking space!!! The ultimate luxury!!).

The congregants have been so warm, so welcoming, and have really opened their hearts and souls to me so far. I began last Wednesday, July 1, and I've been slowly becoming more and more acclimated. Friday night was my very first Shabbat worship service with the community, and I am STILL enjoying it. I felt like I ran a marathon, but it was such an amazing feeling - so much love, spirit, and joy. Though the new cantor doesn't officially begin until August, he was our "special guest," and it was just amazing to see how fun it will be leading services with him all the time.

I can't even begin to convey how thrilled I am to be a part of this new congregation. It is a very exciting time for all of us in the community, as we glimpse the exciting possibilities in our collective future.

Hope all is well with you!!