Orel Family

Back in January, I wrote about the local weather . Seemed we were getting unusually warm weather for an extended period of time, and it seemed a bit... scary. For a period of more than a month, every day was warmer than "normal," most by a wide margin -- 10 degrees or more. Well, the early fall provided an encore of the heat. Today marks the 22nd consecutive day above normal , and the hottest came last. This past weekend saw temperatures 25 degrees above normal . So what else is there to do, but... SWIM!! So we sent out the late invites. Had to call it early, 'cause by 3:45 the sun's behind the trees. And people started to come. And some more people came. Because when it's 90 degrees on October 8th in Michigan, that's what you do . At least, given the opportunity. Glad we didn't stay the whole weekend in Philadelphia! Gotta live in the moment at home. Last Sunday was the sukkah pool party, this weekend 40 people for the October pool ...

After my dad died, we flew in to New Jersey for the funeral and shiva . The rabbi got to the house a few minutes after I did, to go over the funeral as well as the traditions of mourning. He brought his low chairs for the family, and started talking. I knew most of the basics, no shaving or sex during sheloshim , stuff like that. Then he mentioned other “don’ts,” and got to “no live music for a year.” He spoke of how he had had to leave his own daughter’s bat mitzvah party because it was during his mourning period for his mother. So I thought about it. And realized that, despite the positive impact of such a prohibition on my budget, that this was one minhag I did not care to fulfill. At least, I’d have one exception to it, ‘cause when it comes to Bruce it’s not just music to me. The Philadelphia shows went on sale during shiva, but a good friend bought a pair of General Admission for the first night, and held them for me to consider. So I thought about that, too. Philade...