Fathers and Sons... and the Upper East Side

Your humble schlub has two articles out today.

The first is for his former employer, The Forward. In honor of Father's Day, I wrote up a story about one of my father's confrontations with a random stranger (while defending me).

My father didn't seem to like it much. (Hey, no one ever really likes what's written about them.) But he made the criticism that my mother isn't really a balabuste -- which is more of a housewife. This is true, I suppose. However, I would also argue that a balabuste is a tough mother, who keeps the family going and has great valor and spirit. (Which my mother certainly has!)

So I'm sticking with this characterization, for the time being.

My other article today is about how rents are falling on the Upper East Side. To think, my (nice) one-bedroom in Jackson Heights is cheaper than some of the studios that are now on the market in the far East! (The cheap stuff is really, really far east.)

So if you're looking for an apartment, or something to send your father on Father's Day, check 'em out.

California, here I come!

L.A.'s Jewish Journal runs Marissa Brostoff's interview with yours truly from The Forward.

Hallelujah!

I find it slightly difficult to contain my excitement but...

According to the Forward, Michelle Obama's cousin is one of Chicago's prominent black rabbis!!

I'm not sure if this will help Obama politically, but I, for one, am kvelling.

(Hopefully it will undo whatever damage Joe Lieberman is doing with the Miami shuffleboard set. But, frankly, that's highly unlikely. The black Hebrews -- of whom I've met many over the years in my travels -- are pretty disconnected from the wider Jewish world. And in most cases, that's by mutual consent. But one can hope!)

What, me worry?

My Q&A with the Forward is up! (Of course, to get the full effect, fans should look at it from The Forward's home page where they used this photo. "You look a little like Alfred E. Newman," one observer noted.)

And, god bless Marissa Brostoff's heart, she edited out all the parts that made me sound schmucky!

Cue the madness

Well, it's starting...

I'll be on NPR's Bryant Park Project next week to discuss FSTS (either Thursday or Friday -- but I'll be sure to post the details when I get them).

Also, my former employer, The Forward, will be running a Q&A with me about schlubs, etc., which I will post when it's out. (Provided I don't come off looking like too big a schmuck.)

I'm psyched!

Sandler 2.0

I'm a little late getting to this, but my friend Daniel Treiman had a pretty funny article in The Forward a few weeks back arguing that Adam Sandler (schlub extraordinare) is, in fact, "the most important living Jewish commentator".

I'm going to have to go ahead and disagree with you there.

Daniel's thesis is, more or less, that Sandler has done more to make Jewishness (or Israeliness, as is the case in "You Don't Mess with the Zohan") a normal, every day, accepted American thing.

It's true, there's something about Sandler that has penetrated the American psyche. When Eric Cartman was trapped in a robot-suit in Hollywood as "Awesome-o" and he was being asked for movie ideas, every single one seemed to involve Adam Sandler in some way. Did Eric (a fervent antisemite) care about Sandler's Jewishness? Not really. So in that sense, I think Daniel might be on to something...(but most important Jewish commentator? Come on!)

I'd say that Sandler has done as much for schlubs, though, as he has done for Jews.