Tonight is the first night of Chanukah. I’d mentioned I was listening to some Chanukah music. Wanted to give a few quick recommendations. I have nearly 200 Chanukah tracks.
It’s Chanukah(Amazon link) – An album released back in 2011 by a friend of mine, Scott Eckers. It features the students of the I.L. Peretz Jewish School. It’s a nice production.
A Maccabeats Chanukah(Amazon link) – Just released, the Maccabeats cover some classic Chanukah songs.
Woody Guthrie’s Happy Joyous Hanukkah by the Klezmatics(Amazon link) – Several rerecord Woody Guthrie Chanukah songs, Guthrie poems about the holiday, and some instrumental compositions by the Klezmatics.
Hooked on Chanukah(Amazon link) – Nothing like a classic Boy’s Choir to sing some holiday songs.
There are many more I haven’t mentioned, like the five different version of the classic Ladino song, Ocho Candelikas. And I’m skipping I have a little Dreidel. But to continue to expand my collection. Any suggestions?
I walked into a store right after Thanksgiving and started hearing Christmas Music. I see this as a signal to bring Chanukah Radio on the air. Broadcasting wherever I am.
It was once considered unbecoming, or annoying itself, to moan publicly about trifling personal ordeals. Now we tolerate, even encourage, the microcomplaint.
This is pretty much a large part of my professional life…other people microcomplaining.
It’s been a while since the last post on this matter…but I intend to finish this narrative.
Thursday, June 11, 2015
The Israeli Flag over Ammunition Hill
We headed to Ammunition Hill. I have to say that their museum’s video display was one of the most well-done presentations I can recall seeing in a museum. Ammunition Hill was a Jordanian military post in East Jerusalem and the site of one of the battles of the Six-Day War.
The Jordanians seized control of the hill during the 1948 conflict, which severed the connection between Mount Scopus and West Jerusalem. On June 6, 1967 at 2:30AM, the Israelis attacked. However, due to faulty intelligence, the size of the Jordanian forces was three times as much as expected. The battle ended four hours later, with 36 Israeli soldiers and 71 Jordanians killed.
Bar Mitzvah outside Old City
We returned to just outside the gates of the old city to see a common site…young boys preparing for a Bar Mitzvah at the Western Wall. They are escorted from outside under a chupah with friends and musicians.
The KnessetThe Menorah
The Knesset, 1970s
The Knesset is the legislature of Israel. It first convened on February 14, 1949, and moved to its current location in 1966. The Menorah is located in front of the Knesset and was presented in 1956. It took over six years to finish, and depicts various scenes from the history of the Jewish people.
Holyland Model of JerusalemThe Holyland model at its original location
At the Israel Museum, you can not only see the Dead Sear scrolls(no photography permitted), but the Holyland Model of Jerusalem. Commissioned in 1966 by the owner of the Holyland hotel, it was relocated to the museum in 2006.
Since 1965, the majority of the Dead Sea scrolls can be found at the Shrine of the Book, at the Israel Museum.
Next time…we finish off the New City with Mount Hertz and Yad Vashem and move on to the final touring day.
After living in New York City my entire life, I finally got around to visiting the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island today. I went on the Ellis Island Hard Hat Tour.
“Your tour guide will take you to select areas of the 750-bed Ellis Island Hospital, including infectious and contagious disease wards, kitchen and the mortuary and autopsy room. At its peak of operation in the early 20th century, this was the largest Public Health Service facility in the United States. Following in the footsteps of the dedicated doctors and nurses of years gone by, you will learn the fascinating history of the hospital and its role in preserving public health. You’ll also visit the Laundry Building, with much of its original equipment still in place, where over 3000 pieces of laundry were washed and sanitized daily.”
A ward, last used as a Coast Guard office in the 1950s
Most people do not realize that Ellis Island had a hospital, or the controversial nature of it. From 1902 to 1930, the hospital treated immigrants who were identified with a health deficiency of some kind. One in five immigrants who passed through Ellis Island were identified as having an issue, and nine out of ten of those were eventually cured and allowed to enter the United States.
A Tuberculosis Spit Sink
It was an amazing concept then, as it would be today. It was one of the largest public health hospitals in U.S. history. It was designed based on the philosophies of the time, with isolated wards to keep disease from spreading, large windows and other natural methods of circulating air, a mattress sterilizer, and a dedicated laundry for hospital linens.
By the thirties, advances in technology, including air circulation systems, made the hospital increasingly obsolete. It was receiving little upgrades or equipment. Ultimately, the hospital was closed and was used as a military psychiatric hospital during its later years.
In the end, on November 12, 1954, 61 years(less one day) to the day I stopped by, the hospital closed for the last time. There was no removal of fixtures or supplies. The fixtures were so antiquated, the employees simply left everything where it was…where it remained…ready for the next day that never came. Over the next few decades, the island was looted and vandalized, until it was reopened as a museum.
The Structure is Still Remarkable
Statue of Liberty from Ellis Island
The Statue of Liberty from the South Side of Ellis Island
Pathology Lab
The pathology lab in the infectious diseases wing at Ellis Island
After living in New York my entire life, I finally get to Liberty Island
Today, I am at IndieWebCamp at MIT. I’m making the notifications from my site more useful.
E. Virgin Conway, chairman of the MTA from 1995-2001 passed away this week at the age of 85. Here he is, consenting to a picture with me at an event at Grand Central Station in the late nineties
E. Virgin Conway, chairman of the MTA from 1995-2001 passed away this week at the age of 85. Here he is, consenting to a picture with me at an event at Grand Central Station in the late nineties
The administration acknowledged its own role in the proliferation of tests, and urged schools to make exams less onerous and more purposeful.
Finally. I’ve been watching this obsession with standardized testing. It may have taken well too long, if they follow through, the nightmare is ending.
This morning, Open House NYC held its annual open house at the TWA Flight Center at JFK airport. I headed down for a bit before work. The building opened in 1962 as the TWA terminal at the airport. Designed by Eero Saarinen, the building was in use until October of 2001 when TWA merged into American Airlines.
In 1994, the building was declared a landmark by the city. In 2005, the Port Authority and JetBlue Airways began constructing the new T5. The original concourse was knocked down. The only part of it saved was part of the departure lounges, known as the Trumpet, which was lifted and moved at a cost of $895,000, but was ultimately demolished. Despite promises of a complete renovation and use for the space, in the last decade, it has been only open for events such as the Open House.
Just a few days ago, it was confirmed, after years of discussion, that JFK’s first onsite hotel would be built there. According to the renderings I saw today, the hotel would be in two sections at the edge of the terminal near the old tubes that led between the ‘headhouse’ and the concourse, and would not obstruct the views of the existing building.
My Google Cardboard has arrived. This is the most fun I’ve had with a cardboard box since I used to play inside one.
