Shakin the lulav! to the tune of Twist and shout ...Fun

Lag Ba'Omer Day 33 of the omer....

Lag Ba'Omer Sameach! There are 49 days of counting the omer. 32 days have passed and 17 days to go....in gematria of those two numbers are equivalent to "LEV TOV" - "a Good Heart" - May we all be zoche to look at one another with a good heart....

Kol Yisrael Areivim Zeh BaZeh...

Why does the Passover Seder take sooooooo long....

What is the strongest thing in the world...

Purim and Rationalizing Evil in the World

This Video was downloaded here: AISH.com

Go here, for More videos by Lori Almost Live

Chanukah - Foundations

Charlie shows us the beauty behind the message of Chanukah, and the way to achieve Greatness in our lives.

Google Chanukah! or not

HEY LOOK A GOOGLE CUSTOM LOGO FOR CHANUKA!?
hehe.. sorry, it's not....its from Google on "Feb 15, 2007 Fat Thursday - (Poland)
I thought this was nice, reminded me of sufganiyot!

THE ULTIMATE BATTLE - LIGHT AGAINST DARKNESS!

Insight on the festival of Lights, please read
(inspired by a lesson by R.Akiva Tatz)

The Greeks wanted the Jews to live by Greek culture. When the Jews refused to change their ways, Antiochus, the Greek-Syrian Leader embarked on a campaign to eradicate the spirit of the Jews, outlawing circumcision, Shabbat, and Torah study. It was then that the Maccabees rose up in protest.
The Jews won this battle through picking up arms and fighting. The Battle was a totally spiritual battle, it was a fight to destroy the Jewish spirit. The Greek-Syrians did not want to kill the Jews at all. They wanted the Jews to adapt to the idolatrous practices. (which would lead to a spiritual death, not a physical one)

So why did we pick up arms? Shouldn't it be enough to fight back spiritually? The answer is NO. That is not enough. We are taught that, everything is from Heaven except for the fear of Heaven. When it comes to serving G-d, this is up to us,meaning it's up to us to actually take physical action to get closer to G-d. Sometimes it means fighting a physical war, which doesn't always mean with guns and bombs...

a) standing up on the bus so an older man/woman can sit instead of you.
b) Stopping what you are doing, putting your hand in your pocket and take out some change to give money to someone in need.
c) walking to shul to pray, etc etc...

These are all physical battles which spread light in the world and destroy the darkness...and get us closer to G-d.

This is the war that we are still fighting today...

Help spread the light of Torah in the world, by Donating to Yeshivat Ohr Avaraham.

I continue to benefit greatly from this Yeshiva, and I am happy to be participating in this worthy fundraising cause, and I hope that it will be successful. The success of my personal portion of this campaign depends mainly on my physical efforts, and on those of all my friends and family. (-:
THANKS A MILLION EVERYONE!

Yaakov Shwekey Live in Raanana - Sukkot 5770 - Couple Video clips

The Sukkot Holidays went well B"H. I was able to go with the family to a Shwekey Concert in Raanana. Thanks to Hashem (and the in-laws of course)

In my opinion, Yaakov Shwekey would be categorized in the "Chassidic /Jewish Music" genre . His recent tour would be promoting his new album named "Ad Bli Dai" " יעקב שוואקי - עד בלי די"

I would definitely recommend checking it out, even if you are not into, or have never listened to this style of music. I took some video clips "Live at the concert" and uploaded them to youtube. Check them out below:

This one is an older song "Kol Sasson v'kol Simcha" the crowd gets a little of the spotlight in this one. Nice moment.

And this clip is a song from his album "Lehsem Shamayim"
A quicker song - this was his grand finale to finish off the concert.

A short story of an eternal Nation...

Pesach:Birth pangs of Egyptian slavery, the water splits, a Jewish Nation is born.

Shavuot: The Bar Mitzva, the Jewish Nation receives the Torah, the age of Mitzvot has arrived.

Sukkot: The Wedding begins, under the chupa we go (i.e.The Sukka).

Simchat Torah: What is a wedding without the Dancing!

Happy Holidays - Ketiva V'chatima TOVA to all of Am Yisrael!
Such a special Nation, I so thankful for being part of it.

LAST SHABBAT of 5769! is coming..

This coming Shabbat is the LAST SHABBAT of the year - just before Rosh Hashana 5770 (The Jewish New Year - aka. Judgement day) That is right, this is the last shabbat of 5769!

Our sages teach us that our deeds during the last Shabbat of the year have incredible power to rectify our deeds of all the past 51 Sabbaths of this last year. (5769)

A good tip: try to do something this Shabbat that you may not be capable of doing consistently all year round. Make this Shabbat count!

Here are just some examples to get the ideas rolling:

• Set aside 2 minutes in the daytime to read some tehillim (psalms).
• Set aside only 1 minute and think of how you can make another Jew happy.
• Say Modeh Ani with concentration and gratitude when you wake up in the morning.
• Say Shema before you go to sleep at night.
• Say the first chapter of Birkat Hamazon (grace after meals) slowly, and with proper concentration.
• Say "Shabbat Shalom" to a random Jew on the street. With a Big Smile. (:
• Take 1 minute and appreciate the fact that G-d is giving you air to breathe.

If you are inspired to do something extra this shabbat - Leave a comment and tell our visitors what you have in mind to do. Comments will lead to more ideas..and to more inspiration...for everyone.

May we all have a good Rosh Hashana and may we be zoche to a ketiva v'chatima tova!

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ELUL RECALL NOTICE - "human beings" are being recalled by the Manufacturer!

I recently received this vital information in a recent email forward.

Regardless of make or year, all units known as "human beings" are being recalled by the Manufacturer. This is due to a malfunction in the original prototype units code named "Adam" and "Eve" resulting in the reproduction of the same defect in all subsequent units. This defect is technically termed, "Serious Internal Non-morality," but more commonly known as "SIN."

Some of the symptoms of the SIN defect:
[a] Loss of direction
[b] Lack of peace and joy
[c] Depression
[d] Foul vocal emissions
[e] Selfishness
[f] Ingratitude
[g] Fearfulness
[h] Rebellion
[i] Jealousy

The Manufacturer is providing factory authorized repair service free of charge to correct the SIN defect.

The Repair Technician, Hashem, has most generously offered to bear the entire burden of the staggering cost of these repairs. To repeat, there is no fee required.

The number to call in for repair in all areas is: PRAYER.

Once connected, please upload the burden of SIN through the REPENTANCE procedure. Next, download ATONEMENT from the Repair Technician, Hashem, into the heart component of the human unit.. No matter how big or small the SIN defect is, Hashem will replace it with:

[a] Love
[b] Joy
[c] Peace
[d] Kindness
[e] Goodness
[f] Faithfulness
[g] Gentleness
[h] Patience
[I] Self-control

Please see the operating manual, TORAH, for further details on the use of these fixes. As an added upgrade, the Manufacturer has made available to all repaired units a facility enabling direct monitoring and assistance from the resident Maintenance Technician, Hashem. Repaired units need only make Him welcome and He will take up residence on the premises.

WARNING: Continuing to operate a human being unit without corrections voids the Manufacturer's warranty, exposes the unit to dangers and problems too numerous to list, and will ultimately result in the human unit being incinerated.

Thank you for your immediate attention.
Please assist by notifying others of this important recall notice.
Have an uplifting Chodesh Elul!

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The Fast of Tisha B'av

Join Rabbi Chaim Brovender, Rosh Yeshiva of WebYeshiva, talks about fasting on the 9th of Av. Which actually begins tomorrow night.