Hot Dogs and Led Zeppelin

My first grader, aka The Wolfman's Brother, came home last week talking about how the boys in class have a special nickname for each other, but that it's private and he couldn't tell me more.  I managed to listen carefully enough to learn that boys are called hot dogs and girls are called hamburgers.  When asked the reasoning behind these nicknames, in all the sweet innocence he is, The Wolfman's Brother just said, "I don't know." Awww.

Also last week, my brother, Uncle Goalie, recommended Led Zeppelin's "Hot Dog" from In Through the Out Door as a good idea for spin class.  The Goalie is right...Kashmir might not have enough BPMs.  Yes, I know what BPMs are*.  Do you?

Now that spring is here, it's almost summer, which means hot dog season.






Just don't eat too many.
Nitrates and nitrites are no good for any of us.
Even if it says all natural on the package, just remember they are fooling you.

*of course I didn't until it was pointed out to me!  Now that I do, naturally I feel pretty ignorant since I claim to like music.

Stevie Wonder on My Mind Today...I Wonder Why?

The only recording I had from Stevie Wonder was a 45 record of "Ebony and Ivory," from my cousin's bat mitzvah.  It was just eh.  If only I heard his 1975 funk song "Boogie On Reggae Woman," I might have seen more of this Rock-n-Roll Hall of famer's greatness earlier on in the game.





I do sometimes harbor suspicions for reasons unbeknownst to me, and all I have to say at this time is that I hope that Stevie is doing ok.

Moms Need Nationwide Emergency Child Care Service

Now that you can find Bubbie's Pickles on every Whole Foods refrigerator shelf and eat at Bubbys* comfort-food restaurants in either Tribeca or Dumbo, the word bubby appears fit for mass consumption.  In case you missed the memo, a bubby or bubbie is a Jewish grandmother.  Today's bubby is not limited to the black orthopaedic shoe-wearing stereotype (but if she wore them, you can bet her hip would feel pretty good).  In addition to making kraut and smoking meat, she can be found at the yoga studio, as a docent at the art museum, or working the counter at your local hardware store.  She doesn't even have to be Jewish, and she doesn't have to be.   She might have jumped onto the eco-friendly bandwagon.  Meet Ruth Feldman,  the Green Bubbie, for more on that.

Who of us saw the 1982 film The Electric Grandmother?






What happens when us moms get sick?  Totally out of commission?  Whether you work full time, part time, or fully stay home with your kids, you will need to call someone.  Most of the time, you manage.  But, has this stomach flu thing hit your house yet?  It is really going around, and I hope for you that you don't get it.  You will be wholly debilitated and need help.

If you are lucky enough to live close to family, or really good friends, you call someone.  Ideally it is your own mother who will come to help out.  Not all of us are fortunate to have that option.  Not all of us have Maureen Stapleton in the form of the above-mentioned Electric Grandmother.  And if your friends have children of their own, they aren't going to be in the house at 7:45am to help the littles with getting out the door in the morning.

The solution?

We need a National Bubbie Service!  One where desparate moms can call in the troops at any time of day to take over.  There isn't too much out there along these lines:

• New York City has a service On Call Sitters, but we don't know if they are reliable.  Bubby is reliable, doesn't need a background check, and will bring over chicken soup. 

•  Do a Google search for emergency babysitter NYC and the top link that comes up is a New York magazine article from 2005! 

People, welcome to the '90s (this is my cultural reference to the 90s remake of Father of the Bride which is to say get with the times)!  It is 2012 and there isn't much out there.



The answer for now is to stay healthy.
Wash your hands with warm water and soap.

And at least take a look at this clip where Martin Short was Academy-award worthy:

(Go to 3:40 for a reminder of where "welcome to the 90s" comes from):










*albeit fully treif (not Kosher)

Kony 2012. Tikkun Olam at the Core.

Mark your calendar for 4/20.  No, not for that.  For something actually meaningful that will help change the lives of millions of people.  And the world.

Until I saw this video, I didn't know who Joseph Kony was.

Now I do, and I urge you to watch along with the 80 million others who have viewed it this past week.

Even Stango, who said he didn't have 27 minutes to watch it, did get captivated for 12 minutes.

That says a lot.

Jason Russell's film is so well-made...he got creative and got the message across that the world's top war criminal Joseph Kony needs to be captured by the United States military this year.


It's called "Cover the Night," and it's a poster campaign on April 20, 2012.
Reminds me of "Take Back the Night," but a different issue and one that is so timely there is no time to waste.

Unfortunately it's on Shabbes, but we're still gonna do our part now.


Spread the word.