8 things

(photo by claudecf)

Babka Nosher tagged me for this meme asking for 8 facts/habits about me.

The Rules are:
~ Each player lists 8 facts/habits about themselves.
~ The rules of the game are posted at the beginning before those facts/habits are listed.
~ At the end of the post, the player then tags 8 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

This is an awful like this old meme but I guess that means I'll just have to share a little more! Here goes...

1. I drink what I am sure is an unhealthy amount of coffee and diet coke everyday. (Let's hear it for CAFFEINE - YAY!)


2. I taught myself to read Hebrew from several books after I realized that LO could read more Hebrew than I could.


3. I worked in the theatre on the cruise ship the SS Norway doing the show “Will Rogers Follies”. Before that I worked in the theatre on the cruise ship MS Seaward doing the show “Grease”.
   


4. My English middle name is also LO's first name.


5. My car has a navigation system in it because I am directionally challenged.


6. I have struggled with food issues for as long as I can remember and I even went here for help several times. (Ultimately keeping kosher is what saved me!)


7. I love to scrapbook and my scrapbook pages have been published in Memory Makers, Creating Keepsakes and a CK Idea Book.


8. When LO is asleep, sometimes I play games on her Gameboy. (Shhh...don't tell!)

I tag Z, Hila, Raggedy Mom, Amy Guth, Amishav, Tamara, Another Meshugganah Mommy, and Suburban Kvetch (who has been MIA for months but maybe this will bring her out!)

Tzniut Meme

(photo: tznius.com)

Raggedy Mom tagged me with this meme started by Mother in Israel. It certainly has some thought provoking questions.

1. For married women, do you dress by the same standards as you did when you got married?
I’m not married (but will be soon!) but I don’t believe that my standards will change.

2. Also for married women, do you and your husband conflict about this issue?
As I said in #1, I am not married (yet! LOL) but we have discussed this and we feel that it is up to me as to at what level I feel comfortable. For example, we discussed the headcovering issue and he said he would support me if I decided to cover my hair and that he would also support me if I did not want to cover my hair (shul and other necessary places excluded of course!)

3. Have your standards changed from when you were growing up, and why?
My standards have changed from when I was growing up because I grew up in a more “Reform” type home. When I started working on my conversion and as my observance level became higher, the tzniut issue became more important to me. And now if you looked into my closet, I think I could be a spokesperson for this place.

4. Do you often feel uncomfortable when you are in the company of a group keeping higher or lower standards than you?
Not really. Although in South Florida there are often times when lower standards means women wearing next to nothing…and yes that does make me feel uncomfortable.

5. If you have ever suddenly changed your standard of dress, did people treat you differently or make approving/disapproving remarks?
As mentioned in #3, it was pretty obvious when my dress changed. I work in a building with approx. 2,500 people and I am the only observant Jewish woman here, so I stand out for my dress and my race. Being in South Florida, I hear “Geez, aren’t you hot?” or “I can’t believe you are wearing stockings in this weather” quite often.

6. How accepting is your community of women who "deviate" from the generally accepted mode of dress?
The community is very mixed and therefore pretty tolerant of the various modes of dress.

7. If you have a daughter, has tzniut become an issue yet?
It’s not an issue and I don’t think it will be because she has always been a skirt/dress wearer from before she could even talk. She feels more comfortable this way and she has always been aware of her clothing because as she likes to say, “No one should be seeing MY business.”

6 Weird Things

Raggedy Mom tagged me with this meme...

"According to the rules... Each player of this game starts with the "6 Weird Things about You". People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don't forget to leave a comment that says 'you are tagged' in their comments and tell them to read your blog!"

As if being Chinese and Jewish wasn't weird enough....

1. I like to change the sheets in my bed EVERY day. I just love the feeling of clean fresh sheets.


2. My grandparents owned several Chinese restaurants when I was growing up yet I don't know how to cook. (But thanks to making a lot of Shabbat dinners, I am learning!)


3. I have a degree in theatre and got a "D" in math in college. Ironically I work in a very math-intense industry (Actuarial) now.


4. I always have gum in my mouth (unless I am sleeping, eating or drinking).


5. I always write with a green ink pen.


6. I have a space heater under my desk and if the temperature drops below 90, chances are that it is on.
   

I tag Suburban Kvetch, Yo Yenta, Bice, Mommy's Going Meshugannah, Amy Guth, and Ayelet.

1 Guth, 8 Nights, 36 Bloggers

Amy Guth, the author of Three Fallen Women, had a great idea to do a Chanukah Blog Tour. The 1st night was Leah of Accidently Jewish, the 2nd night was Avi of Tikkun Ger and one of my favourite bloggers Jessica of Suburban Kvetch. I can't wait to meet the rest of the J-Bloggers along the way. Amy meme'd me for the Third Night of Chanukah. I received her book for Chanukah and if you want one of your very own, you can buy it here.

So, here are my answers:

1. Quick! You must turn a plate of latkes into an upscale gourmet delight(as if they aren't already?). What would you add to them to dress them up, flavor and/or garnish them?
I would have to add an Asian flair to it a la this recipe. (Hat tip to Velveteen Rabbi for the link and to Ethan for the recipe.)

2. What is the dumbest thing you've ever heard anyone say about Chanukah?
That's a tie between, "You can't celebrate Chanukah, you're Chinese!" and "Oh, I thought Chanukah was the Jewish word for Christmas."

3. What's the best possible use for olive oil?
With lemon on Israeli salad...yum!

4. Settle it once and for all. Latkes or hammentaschen? Which to you prefer? What about pitting the winner of that contest against sufganiyot?
After my 1000 latke fiasco, I am surprised to say... latkes. But who wouldn't want to eat something fried in oil vs. a cookie with prunes in it? And latkes beat out sufganiyot unless the sufganiyot are just out of the oil - then and only then do they rule over everything.

5. What's the best way to mix up a game of dreidel?
I say write the letters in Chinese - that would sure mix everyone up. (Although Jewish mah-johng players sort of read Chinese.)

6. My novel, Three Fallen Women, shockingly enough, is about the lives of three women. Which three women would you like to have over this year for latkes and why?
Laura Jarblum Margolis because of her work with Holocaust refugees in the Shanghai ghetto. Judaism and China...what more could a Chinese Jew like myself ask for in a dinner guest?

Mrs. Balabusta because you have to admire a Mom of six kids who manages to avoid insanity. (I only have one and sometimes I walk that fine line between sane and cukoo.) Oh yeah and she's Psychotoddler's wife and I would love to hear her side of his stories.

And my best friend "e" because no one could ever ask for a better friend than her.

7. Other than Three Fallen Women (har har), what book do you think would make a great Chanukah gift this year? What book would you like to receive as a gift this year?
I think that The Book Thief would make a great Chanukah gift. I love the choice of Death as the narrator. I read about Elaine Soloway's book, The Division Street Princess on Amy's blog and I would love for this to be my next book.

8. What bloggers didn't participate in Chanukah Blog Tour 5767 and you think should have?
Don't know if they've signed up, but just in case... Amishav, Yo Yenta and Neil.