Sukkah City: NYC 2010

Oh my!! I will not even attempt to describe the mind-blowing awesomeness of one of the most incredible exhibits of all time: Sukkah City: NYC 2010.

Wishing I was in NY right now - would love to see this in person!!! Here's a little glimpse into how truly unbelievable this exhibition is...

Some of the rules: The roof must be made from something that grew in the earth and is no longer attached to the ground, the sukkah must be at least 10 handbreadths tall but not more than 20 cubits, in day; one must have more shade than sunshine, the 3rd wall doesn't need to be complete, at night; one must see the stars from inside the sukkah through the roof.

Some of the Partners: AIA NY, Béhance™, Dwell, Architizer, Core77 etc. (!!!)

Here are a few photos of the winners, but my favorite is that one pictured above (Single Thread, by Matter Practice).

Deck the Wooden Walls!

Wishing all you lovely ladies a fabulous autumn holiday! Enjoy the great outdoors, the good company, and the obviously incredible food! There's a good reason jewish mamas work-it in the kitchen!!! Love that this year Sukkos comes out on the first day of fall... all the woodsy nature of our little booths coupled with the turning leaves... it's a little tiny bit of nature's divine.

Chag Sameach, mamas!!

(Found some packs of these great little silk cut-out leaves at the Target $1 isle. Perfect for some sukkah-interior-decor! Freida went glue-happy!)

Challi-pops!

Food on a stick has become quite the fad; with the bestseller Cake Pops flying off shelves modern moms everywhere are learning the simple tricks of toddler food consumptions, namely, sticks. From the famous ones like marshmallow pops and cinnabun pops, to dinner on a stick like these awesome pizza pops - food on a stick has been deemed super cool. I conjured up these pie pops (with some leftover puff pastry) for our Rosh Hashanah meal, and the kids we had over went wild for them! In the Pre-K classroom, while teaching the concept of a round and sweet challah for Rosh Hashanah, I decided to give over the idea on a much more hands-on level... Hence, challah on a stick. A regular challah recipe, sweetened up with some cinnamon, sugar, raisins or chocolate and rolled around a popsicle stick + a bit of cellophane and a ribbon. Challah on a stick may just be the latest in modern judaism, at least I know my Bubby would go nuts for a "challi-pop"!

A High Holiday Meditation...

I penned this for a creative writing essay while studying in Sydney, Australia. The assignment was to write a response to one who believes Judaism is a cult of sorts (I guess I tweaked the topic a bit). Somehow I always find myself thinking about this around this time of the year, a good High Holiday re-focus, and I thought I'd share it... His wish is our command.

We serve Him, and Him alone - until the very end. We give our entire being over to him; our constant thought, speech, and action. We live not for ourselves, but for Him alone. Everything we work for, receive, or create must be used to serve Him. We are commanded to know Him, love Him, and fear Him at each moment of our lives. Everything we do

is predetermined by Him. Nothing we do is done through our own power or strength – it’s His. Everything we have has been given to us by Him as a kindness. We must bless Him for our blessings, and bless Him for our sufferings as well; for in truth; it is good – only we as finite beings cannot perceive it as such. Only He knows the truth. He lives the truth, He is the truth. He causes us to live; He keeps us alive. When He calls – we go. Our lives are not ours, but His. To the extent that one who has never been introduced to Him, nor lived by any of the above, will give up their life for the sake of His name.

No one can explain how we, as a people, are still going. There is not an entity on earth that has lasted as long as we. There is no logical explanation for the phenomenon named: Jews. We can question all we want, and negate every answer given – but we will endure forever.

There may be a reason, a reason we blindly follow. It is deeper than intellect, thicker than logic, and older than time. It cannot be understood – for then it is no longer a mystery. And the day that it is no longer a mystery is the day that He dwells with us here in this world. We cannot be destroyed; we cannot be lost, for then the universe would cease to exist. We are the sole purpose of creation. Our essence is His essence. We are all bound up. Bound to each other by a string of faith, and bound to Him by our very own being.

We are Him…

Therefore we can never stop.

(Art by YossiGraphicDesign)

The Runways are Covered

Can't quite get over just how covered up the styles were that walked this weeks runways at NYC's Fashion Week. Modesty may have its place in the winter collections - but these are Spring/Summer! Found all that coverage interesting as well as shocking. Who knew? (From Ports, Diane Von Furstenburg, Derek Lam, Vera Wang, & Betsey Johnson)

But here are some of my favorite looks this week (and there's still a day left!):

(From Betsey Johnson, Leifdottir, Elie Tahari, Dennis Basso, Hervé Léger, & Luca Luca)

In a nutshell, I'm loving the revisited nautical, polka dots, gilded accordion-pleats, girly volume, feminine fur touches, and belted basics. So much to love this season!