From sundown Friday to sundown on Saturday is Shabbat—the Sabbath. It’s actually 25 hours just so we don’t start late or end too early. Since I started thinking about such things, I realized that of the Ten Commandments, for me the Fourth Commandment: Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, is one of the […]

My day started at 6:30 am with a walk around Lake Merritt. Other walkers and joggers were already on the path around the lake and a number of people in small boats were sculling in the water. Canada geese and other water fowl were in abundance as well. When I moved from San Francisco to […]

“You must have become very strong pushing that kart up all those hills.” You can’t imagine how many times I’ve heard that statement. Sorry, but no. I’ve read many articles stressing the importance of upper body exercise. Scooby Werkstatt is an online fitness guru whom I first found years ago via his website, scoobysworkshop.com. His videos are […]

Today represented a positive step in returning to my “normal” life. Catherine deCuir, the talented singer with whom I regularly perform, came over (as she typically does on Tuesdays) to discuss upcoming gigs and rehearse a few songs. We also talked about the progress of the novel we worked on for two years. The Rabbi […]

How fast do you lose upper body strength that took 15 years to attain? How many weeks can you go without practicing your instrument(s) before you sound embarrassingly bad? How long does it take to get over a major disappointment, regardless of the many friends who are telling you that you’ve done an amazing thing? […]