Piglet Retrospective IV

 

Just another pig in the crowd, eh? QPR are live on Sky again tomorrow, so the nation and fans across the world will be able to see how we do. We don't have a great record on tv, but who knows. Part of the beauty of football is that anything is possible when the whistle is blown to start the match!

In this pic Piglet is in the Upper Loft with me. I think we might have been playing Chesterfield, but can't quite remember. Looking forward to the time when it will be safe to do this once again!

With a Little Help From My Friends

As you may remember, I do love watching Jewish & Biblical figures playing top-level football. This is a picture of Moses (Victor Moses, then of Stoke City, now I believe recently moved from Inter to Spartak Moscow on loan from the Stamford Bridge folk). And a QPR player (no idea if any but hardcore R's even remember this chap). 

The Torah portion we studied this morning, whose central event is the miracle at the Sea of Reeds, has two images of Moses connected to it that seem quite relevant at the moment. The first comes from midrash - when the Egyptians were about to attack - as R. Adam Greenwald tells it:

"The Israelites gathered at the water's edge, and Moses lifted his hands as God commanded ... and nothing happened. The sea remained still ... then, out of the crowd, walked a solitary figure:  Nachshon, the son of Aminadav, stepped into the water. His family and friends looked on with horror and amazement. They cried:  "What are you doing? Where are you going?" Nachshon walked forward like a man possessed - up to his knees, his waist, his chest. The second the water came up just over his nostrils, the second when he is fully submerged, at that moment and not a second before, the sea split."

I do think this is important for us to consider in our current turbulent times. Do we stay where we are, paralysed by fear of what may happen? Or can we find the courage not only to take a first step, but to keep going? Nachshon appeared to be bonkers. But he was also brave. 

Of course Nachshon, who isn't mentioned at this point of the Torah portion himself, worked alone. There is another perspective presented in the text at the end of the portion:  Moses instructs Joshua to lead the Israelites in battle against Amalek. During the fight, Moses plans to be on the top of a hill, holding the staff of God in his hand. 

So Joshua went into battle, and Moses went up the hill, accompanied by Aaron & Hur. When Moses' hand was up, Israel prevailed; but when his hand went down, then Amalek was on top. So his companions helped him. First they found a stone upon which he could sit, and then they stood either side of him, supporting his hands so they could remain steady until Joshua had won the battle.

This is what is written in our ancient text. And this is what it taught me today:  sometimes we may be Moses, with a difficult task to do; and if possible, it's a pretty good idea to bring back-up with us. And sometimes we may be Aaron or Hur, supporting our friends and helping them through a difficult time. 

With thanks to all who support me, and the hope that any support I offer may be helpful.

Shavuatov. Have a good week.

Dancing in the Rain

Do you see what I see? A couple of years ago I spent quite a while photographing raindrops bouncing off the windowsill by my desk. This pic is a bit grainy, I know, but I am convinced that the mass of drops in the middle looks like a person in a skirt twirling around. It looks to me like they are dancing. 

With all good wishes for a joyous Shabbat.

 

Teaching the Shoah to Younger Students

Yesterday in Italy we observed il Giorno della Memoria, aka Holocaust Memorial Day or Holocaust Remembrance Day. I was asked recently why this day exists when we already have Yom HaShoah. My response was that Yom HaShoah is an observance within the Jewish community, when we mourn our families. Perhaps one might say it is like a communal yahrzeit. 

HMD is for all communities of the world, and for all victims of Nazi evil. In my experience, it is much more connected to the concept of memory as an educational tool, which certainly includes paying one's respects to the victims, but really focuses on the more universal aspect of how to fight intolerance and hatred.

Once a week I go to a local state/public school and at the end of the school day I teach 2 hours of English language conversation to 19 children in the First class (c. age 11). They've just finished their first term of regular English lessons in the school, so our vocabulary is a little limited. However, since our weekly lesson fell on the exact date of HMD, with the support of the regular English teacher, we decided to devote yesterday's class to the Shoah.

It was quite a challenge to figure out how to present something appropriate for their age and language skills. But their teacher was quite excited to have me as a resource - I am the first Jew that any of the children have ever met (or, as young G. noted, as far as they know!). We have spent the last couple of lessons learning about family relationships ('niece' & 'nephew' use the same word in Italian as 'grandchildren', i.e., 'nipote'. This has been very confusing for them!), so I decided to tell them the stories of two of my relatives, using their experiences as prompts for further discussion.

The video above is the slideshow/Powerpoint presentation I used as a prompt for our class. V., the regular teacher, sat with us and translated when necessary. Even though this was supposed to be an English lesson, it was important she was there, and I was most grateful.

I think the lesson went quite well. The students had spent the previous 3 hours studying the Shoah, as mandated by the state. And last week I also spent a little time in our class preparing for the discussion. The spectrum of knowledge was broad, ranging from someone who could quote Anne Frank's Diary to someone who didn't know what a Jew was. So we did some basic history. For the main lesson, I had two concerns - how to present the horror without being too horrible, and - and this was the biggie - to address why they need to study this. Why should an 11-year-old kid from Modena care about what happened to an old woman from Chodziez a gazillion years ago?

Nu, you can see in the video how I tried to deal with it all. In very simple English. At the end there are photos of my parents with Otto Frank - I had mentioned a family connection and promised to bring the pics to show them. I thought that would be all, and then I was surprised and touched to be presented with a card that the children had made for me, and some of the pictures they had drawn.

Afterwards I had a quick word with the teacher and offered to work together for next time so that there might be a curriculum for the school. Apparently they got a letter with links to some videos to be watched and the command that creative work such as drawing and writing poems must be encouraged. I would love to help them develop something more structured. There was a positive verbal response, so we shall see ...!

RIP Cloris Leachman

Cloris Leachman lived a long and productive life. When her death was announced today, her son said (according to TMZ) that "she had the best life from beginning to end that you could wish for someone," and "she left everyone with a lot of love." Who would not wish for an epitaph like that?

Leachman had a long and storied career on stage, screen and TV. She won an Oscar, and a record-setting 8 Emmy awards. She also holds the record for Emmy nominations with 22 of them. And she is currently the oldest person to have competed on Dancing With the Stars (the US version of our beloved Strictly), placing 7th in 2008 when in her early 80's.

The Mary Tyler Moore Show is one of my all-time favourites, so I certainly appreciated Leachman's portrayal of Phyllis, Mary's landlady. However, like so many others, the first memory that always comes to mind is of the magnificent Frau Blücher in "Young Frankenstein". When searching for a clip to illustrate this character, I found the Italian version above. I've never seen it before, and had a good laugh, especially at Marty Feldman's final line. Enjoy.

[ok ok, a slightly different collection of clips, but in English!]

Piglet Retrospective III

 

Today is Holocaust Memorial Day. Piglet visits The Empty Library memorial created by Mischa Ullman. 

In memory of all who suffered, with the hope that one day soon we will actually learn from the past, and eradicate the fear and hatred that causes such pain.

Shavuatov - A Good Week to All

Yesterday evening, as I was scratching Sara the Cat in a favourite place near her ear, she put her paw on my arm. The unusual thing was that when I moved my arm momentarily and her paw slipped off, she put it back. I felt somehow comforted by this. It was as if she was saying "Yihiyeh tov." ("Things will be better") It's a great way to start the week. Shavuatov everyone, have a good week!

Stupid is as Stupid Does

So the EarDoc told me to go and get a spray to help protect my ear for the moment. It had to be ordered (suggesting they don't have much call for it), but the lovely ladies at the Farmacia Beata Vergine della Salute were, as always, kind and helpful.a Salute

Love the box and the olde-time style. So I took out the bottle and read the instructions, which said I should put the nozzle in my ear and pump the shot directly inside. The paper on which the instructions were written was tiny, without diagrams or photographs.

Am I becoming senile? I look at this nozzle, and cannot for the life of me figure out how I can get it in my ear. Maybe if I turn the bottle upside-down? Does it work like a clip-on earring? No it does not. I'm afraid to push it too far in case the plastic breaks. I go online to see if they have instructions in English. Indeed they do, and they say exactly the same as the Italian version. No images, and I learn a bit about construction work (Boral is a big name in the field of building materials). I sit and look at the bottle on the table, and I haven't got a clue. I'm thinking stupid is as stupid does.

Along comes my beloved. I explain the problem, and she does this:

O dear.

Duh!

(apply appropriate epithet)

And, more than anything, grazie amore!

Bernie Sanders Does it Again

This is a photograph of Bernie Sanders at the Capitol building in Washington DC during the Inauguration of President Biden yesterday. His mittens in particular seem to have captured the interest of folk on social media. NPR suggested that he had won "the Inauguration Day Meme Game". 

And then, one of my colleagues posted a link called "Put Bernie Anywhere" that places this photo in a Google photo of that site.

Greatest Procrastination Device of the Week!

You've got to be careful with the wording of the location, but you can put him pretty much anywhere.

At the Sydney Opera House:

At the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin:

In Pisa:

Also, there's no guarantee that the vista chosen will actually show the object/building/view that you requested. For example, when I entered "Jolly Green Giant statue" (that I visited a gazillion years ago in Blue Earth, MN) I got this:

but there's no view of the big guy that we saw when we drove through Minnesota:

O, and be as specific as you can. When I put "Modena", a city of c. 190k people, with a historic centre full of beautiful architecture, and a nine-hundred-year-old cathedral:

I got this:

Senator Sanders is sitting by the bus stops at the main railway station of Modena. I'm proud that I know this, since I often claim to have become a Modenese, and such knowledge supports that claim!

Anyway, it's a bit of fun connected to the news today. Enjoy. As for me ... PROCRASTINATION, THOU HAST BESTED ME ONCE MORE. I'm off for a nap.

Piglet Retrospective II

 

Today is an auspicious day. In Washington DC leaders are being sworn in, and we can only hope that they will be able to begin the healing process so dearly needed. The last time Piglet was in DC, he demonstrated his desire to be closer to the White House with this selfie, so it seems appropriate to choose it for today's offering. 

Wishing everyone safety and good health, and wishing President Biden and Vice-President Harris strength and courage for the work that lies ahead.

Piglet Retrospective I

In today's English language class we had a discussion regarding the difference between "to cheer" and "to cheer up". A student had bought herself some yellow tulips because it was a grey morning. We then got to dissect the lyrics of "Tulips from Amsterdam", but that's a different post. It occurred to me that somebody somewhere, someone who has not yet encountered the Piglet Series, might be cheered up by some of these old pictures of mine. And thus is born the Piglet Retrospective.

The origin of these photos lies in the gift of Piglet by my youngest sister to her father. He used to travel a lot, and I think she gave him the pig so he would think of her when he was away. He decided to take pictures of Piglet posing wherever their journeys took them. When I became a photographer, and travelled quite a bit also, my father passed Piglet on to me. 

This shot is one of my favourites. I got a High Holyday pulpit in Seattle, and decided to drive there (from Virginia) in order to visit Mount Rushmore and take a Piglet picture. (Reading the Hebrew way ...) President, President, President, President, Pig. Love it!

Happy Martin Luther King Jr Day!

The USA is celebrating a holiday today. Although there are some fears that, with the Presidential Inauguration only two days away, there may be some violent protesting, we can only hope that the memory of Dr Martin Luther King Jr may be an inspiration for work towards healing and civic unity. To this end, I was interested to read on CNN yesterday about the Martin Luther King Day of Service (see here). Americans are encouraged to look at today as an opportunity to engage in volunteer service, rather than binging on Bridgerton.

Meanwhile, here is the annual presentation of the famous photo including my father. This is the more recently discovered version, in which you may see his entire head (+ yarmulke). It is good to have an excuse to share this once again. Hopefully I will continue to make his memory a blessing by developing what he taught us about tolerance and understanding.

On the Way Home

The Wednesday afternoon class that I teach is so terribly afflicted by Covid restrictions - masks on all the time, everyone must stay in their seats, nobody can touch anything touched by someone else, everyone must work individually, etc. After a full day of school these nineteen 12-year-olds are to be commended for not going all Lord of the Flies on me during our 2 hours together, and I am learning what it is possible to teach under such circumstances.

When it's time to go home, the children find a renewed energy and burst out of the doors of the school. I walk home gently, carefully, saving myself for the three flights of stairs at the end of the journey. Today I stopped on the way, by the door of the now defunct Peccati di Gola (Sins of Gluttony) chocolate shop, and watched this cyclist practice the trick of riding along the wall.

The photo is a little out of focus (low light and an iPhone6) but I enjoyed watching, especially that he kept coming back to try again. I have a week to reset myself, and will try again at the school next week!

AJ at Work (1980's style)

A little insomnia once more led to internet wanderings, and just now I chanced upon a brief clip of a football match on the Omniturf at QPR in 1983. Watching R's goals is always cheery, and then imagine my surprise when, as the commentator focuses on a scuffle between our beloved Simon Stainrod and Villa's Peter Withe, I realise that the photographer in front of the elf advertising board is me!

This match was when I got one of my earliest photographers' passes from Ron Phillips, and I think the grainy screenshot above shows the moment I took the picture he printed. I don't have that programme to hand, but found a scan:

This was a bit of afters following some previous scuffles I think. I was quite proud of it at the time. Anyway, the photo has been with me all these years, but it was lovely to see the tv footage of long ago and far away.