Haftarah for Shabbat Ytro (Prophetic Reading for Feb 7)

Sun is setting here in my home town of Knoxville, Tennessee. I mention that because someone asked me today if I was up in Marquette. No, I'm what my UP neighbors call a "Snowbird"--flying south for the winter. I like to say we're "bicoastal"…

Peggy Gordon, R.I.P.

In the late '90s, Terri and I made our first trip to Tennessee to adopt our wonderful Spanish Water Dog, Nina de Amor, in the Tri-Cities area. Coming from Ann Arbor, that meant traversing Knoxville, the first time I ever saw it. But it wasn't Terri's first time--that happened…

A Note For Subscribers Via Email

Dear Friends, This is a repeat but I think necessary note about my posts which are received via email. As you know, my posts about classical history often contain foreign language characters from Hebrew and Greek. The program which takes the post and converts it to…

On Crucifixion and Capital Punishment Within Judean History with a Note About Hanukkah!

This issue turned up in one of my social media conversations, and I think it deserves a bit more explanation, so I’ll do that here. I mentioned that while our rabbinic ancestors did everything possible to deny…

Words Which Flip from Bad to Good and Vice Versa

I had one of those "only in the universe of social media" events today, and I don't mean that in a good way--which is sort of the theme of this post! I belong to a group on Facebook which focuses on the Yiddish language and today my feed included a…

Here We Go With Socialism and Communism (Yet Again)!

The election of Zohran Mamdani keeps yielding interesting points for conversation. The opposition to Mamdani is boiling over with denunciations of him as if he is some sort Soviet-style communist. Part of these opinions is based on a…

Another Take on Anti-Zionism versus Antisemitism

The Mamdani election continues to yield a rich discussion of important issues, at least within the communities I'm involved with. One issue that concerns me from the perspective of a teacher of the history of antisemitism is the widespread…

Mamdani and Kirk

Tomorrow, as I write this, there are "off-year" elections throughout the USA, with most eyes focused on the mayoral election in New York City. That's because a young, charismatic Iranian Muslim immigrant has defied all odds to be the leading candidate in the region with the…

Confession of an Ardent Zionist

One of the most distressing things to me of late is the destruction being wrought on a number of English language words and terms in the current social media frenzy. No word has garnered more negative energy world-wide in recent months than "Zionism." And in the…

Last Update–Hopefully!–On Personal Health Issues

Dear Friends, This will be brief, and hopefully the last message of this sort I need to send out for awhile. As of this week, all restrictions have been lifted on my activities. I've returned to the gym for my usual workout program, and I'm walking…

Just Before Yom Kippur

Dear Friends, It's 5pm as I write this and I just returned from my first post-op appointment. I'm happy to report that the stitches have been removed and everything seems to be on track to a good recovery.  It's also just a couple of hours from the beginning of Yom Kippur,…

Brief Announcement About Me

Dear Friends, I've updated a few of my friends via email and social sites, but I've neglected my friends here on my blog.  On Friday 9/19 I'm heading over to the hospital to receive a "revision" on my already artificial left knee. The surgeon will decide whether I need…

Ken Cohen, Alav HaShalom

I lost one of the most important people in my life a day or so ago. My dear friend, Ken Cohen, succumbed to a vile illness which took him from us all too soon. I met Ken when he enrolled in a Biblical Hebrew course I taught on the campus of Stanford University, around the…

When Posts Containing Hebrew Are Sent Through Email

Dear Friends, I wrote a blog entry today about a topic in Hebrew language. As far as I can see, the Hebrew looks fine when I read it in the blog. But the version I see in email has question marks and other gibberish where the article has Hebrew…

Musings on the Qametz Qaton and Shva

This topic is one of the more frequently recurring in my Hebrew teaching, the question of the proper pronunciation of the vowel sign qametz: -? Speakers using the traditional Ashkenazi pronunciation pronounce every qametz like the “aw” in “awful.” The modern…

Excavations at Our Marquette House

We're having another summer of major changes for our Marquette house--which we purchased some years ago as needing no renovations or repairs. Laugh out loud! A couple of years ago we experienced some sewer line blockage, so we called in the plumbers and after a…

Of Computers and Disc Drives: A Tale of Woe and Behold

Ever wonder why the main drive on most computers is the C) drive? Did it stand for "C"omputer? No, that would be too simple and logical. The real story is much more amusing. When computers first became small and inexpensive enough for ordinary…

The Urge to Make Historical Events More Antique

Throughout my academic career I've encountered and dealt with a concept I call deliberate archaization. There seems to be a pervasive notion that the older something is, the more authentic it is. Possibly the most famous example of this is ascribing…

A Bit More Experimentation Going On

Please forgive any accidental posts which look a bit strange. I'm still doing a little development of the blog, and I may accidentally publish things I don't intend to go out. Apologies in advance, but hopefully things will settle down pretty soon. Jack

foreign language

Shavu'a tov friends, and an easy fast to those who observe the occasion.

Fantastic Four: First Steps. Four stars. Go see it--preferably wide screen.

I haven't checked out Bluesky in awhile. Anyone interested in conversing with me?

Well, I'm still awaiting the first person to comment on anything I say here, but in the meantime, just in case someone is listening, Shabbat Shalom, peace of the Sabbath to you!

Friends and Family of Jack and Terri Love News and Views of the Lives of the LoveLees

I'm honoring the Meta boycott today, so my posts will appear either here or on my Blog (blog.loveleefamily.net).

A few of my friends are suggesting that the ON is right in claiming that prior presidents caused the recent crash. The problem with that idea is that he somehow isn't including his own prior four years in that list. Nor am I seeing an explanation for how a hiring freeze will help.

The double-red aurora on New Year's Day, near Pieve di Cadore in Italy.

Photo posted by NASA, not photoshopped!

A New Year's Aurora and SAR Arc
Image Credit & Copyright: Alessandra Masi

After 71° yesterday

Terri and I just saw the new movie version of Wicked. Highly recommended!

All dog owners get this joke!