Various and Sundry are fasting today

[lagilman]

Worldly Things:

-The phrase "my friends" needs to be banned from politics. Immediately.
-Tom Brokow is never allowed to moderate anything again. He was about as effective as a crossing guard in a stampede, and twice as flat while still being intrusive.
-Whatever is happening with the economy, the rules are changing. It would make sense for everyone to pay attention and hold on with as little panic as they can manage.

Right. Moving on. Yesterday was a useful lunch with Madame Agent, then a useful few hours at Starbucks with my manuscript and red pen and probably too much caffeine, and then a totally un-useful but fun few hours at [name redacted to protect my fave wine bar from being overrun].

Non-Worldy Things: And it is Yom Kippur. I missed kol nidre services and that made me sad. Kol nidre is possibly the most beautiful (if controversial) thing religion ever created. . 'Kos Nidre' means 'All Vows' and it is a prayer recited at the beginning of the Yom Kippur service:

All personal vows we are likely to make, all personal oaths and pledges we are likely to take between this Yom Kippur and the next Yom Kippur, we publicly renounce. Let them all be relinquished and abandoned, null and void, neither firm nor established. Let our personal vows, pledges and oaths be considered neither vows nor pledges nor oaths

It was controversial because outsiders took it to mean that the word of a Jew could not be trusted, etc, and there were periods of time where it was not included in the services for that reason. But Yom Kippur is a day of Atonement between the individual and god -- "dear lord, I am sorry that I take your name in vain for small and foolish things. I am sorry that I take your name in oath for matters that were of no consequence -- "I swear to god!" I know that I will do it again because it is an easy phrase to use and I am weak and mortal. On this day, forgive me in advance for these failures to honor your name in proper fashion, and not use it for vows that cannot or should not be made or kept.

On Rosh Hashanna we ask to be forgiven trespasses against others, and forgive them against ourselves. On Yom Kippur we ask of god the same forgiveness, and if asked in good faith, s/he grants it.

Yeah, I don't believe in god, as such. There is still something There, and today is the day I try to make my peace with it, and myself. Fasting, as much as my body resents it (fasting and hypoglycemia do not mix well) is my way of focusing my mind and soul on the question: am I calm and accepting/forgiving enough to have the Universe be calm and accepting/forgiving of me?

I am thankful for services broadcast on the internet. Next year, having moved into a neighborhood where there are many congregations who would welcome me, I will do better.

And, for those of you for whom this is just another day,

♥A is for age: 41
♥B is for beer of choice: Bass
♥C is for career right now: Writer/editor
♥D is for your dog's name: Mei-Chan the time-share puppy
♥E is for essential item you use everyday: toothbrush
♥F is for favorite TV show: CSI is back tonight!
♥G is for favorite game to watch: Football
♥H is for Home town: Maplewood
♥I is for instruments you play: none
♥J is for favorite juice: cider
♥K is for whose butt you'd like to be kicking: someone in the upper levels of Harlequin's Operations department
♥L is for last place you ate at: A Voce
♥M is for marriage: Probably not again
♥N is for your name: Laura Anne
♥O is for overnight hospital stay: Many, never fun.
♥P is for people you were with today yesterday, since it's still morning: arcaedia; S.
♥Q is for what's your best quality: My capacity to be amused.
♥R is for what are you currently reading: first draft of Vineart 1
♥S is for relationship status: dating
♥T is for time you woke up today: 6:30am
♥U is for the type of underwear you have on: NOYDB
♥V is for vegetable you love: I don't know that I love any of them but I'm quite fond of carrots. Also yams....
♥W is for worst habits: procrastination and laziness
♥X is for x-rays you've had recently: My teeth
♥Y is for something candy: I have a friend Candy, does that count?
♥Z is for zodiac sign: Virgo

Comments

[fakefrenchie.livejournal.com]

"K is for whose butt you'd like to be kicking: someone in the upper levels of Harlequin's Operations department"

What have they done now?

[lagilman]

still trying to figure out/fix why new copies of STAYING DEAD aren't being printed/shipped despite everyone agreeing that this is a thing we all want. Someone, somewhere is clearly having Competency Issues and that's the department that ends up holding the buck.

[taikyoyo.livejournal.com]

He's not MY friend, as I told the television set many times the other night.

I miss Tim Russert.

Kol Nidre controversial? I'll have to investigate.

[lagilman]

Kol Nidre controversial

See my notes under the cut. It's been omitted, revised, rewritten, reinstalled..... I can see the arguments and even agree with them, but the music is still a thing of beauty.

[anisosynchronic.livejournal.com]

I thought you were going to include the context behind the creation of that formula.... (mostly forced conversion and cryptojudaism, in which the people publically converted and continued practicing Judaism in secret.... more than 500 years after the explusion of any Jews who didn't publically convert to Catholicism in Spain, there are the descendants of people who publically converted, who have been coming out of the closet as Jews... for others, the rejection of the conversion and secrecy was for orders of magnitude shorter times, lasting until having gotten safely out of Iberia or wherever else the forced conversions had occurred, and to areas where it wasn't so life-threatening to be openly Jewish).

[kynn.livejournal.com]

The phrase "my friends" needs to be banned from politics. Immediately.

It's been replaced with "my fellow prisoners."