What Could Go Wrong? Worry #10: “The Bar Mitzvah Blizzard” “Relax, enjoy everything,” my relatives counseled leading up to my son’s (just-concluded) bar mitzvah weekend. “What could possibly go wrong?” I actually had no fewer than 74 discrete worries, but these were my “Top Ten”: 10. Epic blizzard will shut down local airport; Gramie, Zadie, Grandpa...Read More
[As in, “Open Bar”] That was the word I got from a relative — OK, my Mom — who attended a ritzy Los Angeles bar mitzvah last weekend. Apparently, the proceedings were more focused on the after-party (and drinking) than on the religious rituals traditionally associated with a 13 year-old Jewish boy “coming of age.”...Read More
Catering For The End of the World “Hang in there,” the acquaintance said. “It’s all going to be over in 10 days, anyways.” To which I responded, “Oh, I’m sure it won’t take that long. Hopefully, everything will be back to normal by early next week.” When that was met with a quizzical look, I asked, “What were...Read More
My sole duty this morning was to deliver bagels to Beth El synagogue, in Minneapolis suburb St. Louis Park. That’s where son #1’s bar mitzvah will be next weekend (very fortuitous timing, in light of today’s 10″ of snow in the Twin Cities). Traditionally, the upcoming “bar mitzvah family” provides the noshes for the bar/bat mitzvah...Read More
To Open an Account or Not (That is the Question) My son’s Bar Mitzvah (Jewish confirmation, sort of) is rapidly approaching, which means that a slew of checks — many of them from out-of-state relatives — isn’t far behind. Opening a “kid” checking account for him certainly seems like the smart, responsible thing to do....Read More
