Cabinet trivia

While you wait for my blow-by-blow description of my weekend, here's a pair of trivia that came up over Shabbat.

• Of all the U.S. presidents to have served at least one complete term, only one left office with the same cabinet he initially appointed. Who?

• FDR, of course, was the longest-serving president. Two of his cabinet members served for his entire administration. Who were they?

Cabinet trivia

While you wait for my blow-by-blow description of my weekend, here's a pair of trivia that came up over Shabbat.

• Of all the U.S. presidents to have served at least one complete term, only one left office with the same cabinet he initially appointed. Who?

• FDR, of course, was the longest-serving president. Two of his cabinet members served for his entire administration. Who were they?

Three-day Yom Tovs and a Wedding. And a Bat Mitzvah.

The holidays were great. ( Long details behind the cut )

Three-day Yom Tovs and a Wedding. And a Bat Mitzvah.

The holidays were great. ( Long details behind the cut )

Simchat Torah "Praylist"

Thank you to everyone who made suggestions of tunes to use for my Simchat Torah davening. It went really well; I got a lot of compliments. ( Details behind the cut. )

So it was a lot of fun for me and, I think, it rewarded the people who actually showed up on time for the last day of the holiday season. Yes, I find it more meaningful when I'm asked to lead Geshem on Shemini Atzeret, but this was a nice change of pace.

And most importantly, it was a chance to embellish our prayers -- admittedly in an unusual way, but in a way that, I hope, by being "logocentric" in its humor and (dare I say) wit, got people to think about the words instead of falling into a rut after all these weeks of holy days.

Simchat Torah "Praylist"

Thank you to everyone who made suggestions of tunes to use for my Simchat Torah davening. It went really well; I got a lot of compliments. ( Details behind the cut. )

So it was a lot of fun for me and, I think, it rewarded the people who actually showed up on time for the last day of the holiday season. Yes, I find it more meaningful when I'm asked to lead Geshem on Shemini Atzeret, but this was a nice change of pace.

And most importantly, it was a chance to embellish our prayers -- admittedly in an unusual way, but in a way that, I hope, by being "logocentric" in its humor and (dare I say) wit, got people to think about the words instead of falling into a rut after all these weeks of holy days.