Tales from the Stoveside
Parshas Mikeitz and Chanukah

Last night we had a Chanukah party at my house. I was busy preparing for an important lecture, so I was hoping to stay out of the kitchen entirely. But just when I thought I was free and clear, I…

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Parshas Mikeitz and Chanukah

We’ve seen this before…
Parshat Mikeitz 5781

Hello Everybody, 3761 BCE, the dead of winter The world was coming to an end. No, not the Al Gore style world coming to an end in a few decades if we don’t stop man-made global warming, but the world…

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Parshat Mikeitz 5781

Modern Art Chanukah!
Partshat Mikeitz/Chanukah 5780

Art Basel, according to Art Basel, is “the leading global platform connecting collectors, galleries, and artists.” The organization runs major art fairs in three cities around the world; Hong Kong, Basel (Switzerland), and Miami. Art Basel is not the place…

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Partshat Mikeitz/Chanukah 5780

The Layaway Angels
Parshat Mikeitz/Chanukah

It doesn’t look like we’ll be having snow angels this Chanukah in our area, but instead we got a different kind of angel, the layaway angel. Like so many good things, layaway angels got their start in the great state…

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Parshat Mikeitz/Chanukah

Yesterday I was Sent to Prison…Mikeitz/Chanukah 5777

Yesterday, I was sent to prison. Not by the judicial system, but by the Aleph Institute, a phenomenal organization that looks after the spiritual and physical needs of a number of isolated populations, most notably: the incarcerated, the military, and…

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