Friday, August 12 2011

Yesterday things changed. Sam, a young fellow who started coming in July, is now Gabai. Sam is very tall and slender. His clothes hang from him as if from a hook on the wall. He smiles frequently and spent a semester in Buenos Aires. He speaks to me in Spanish with an Argentinean-American accent. It is very peculiar. We talked back in July and he explained to me that he was not very up-to-date on the various aspects of prayer becasue he only recently became religious, Choser Ve-Tshuvah ("one who returns in response" to an inner calling, I suppose). Ben , the normal Gabai, is not here. No one told me why, I believe he must be on vacation.

I did nto go today for two reasons. First I am going tonight to Rodeph Shalom, and second Sam did a pol of hands yesterday to see who was coming today and it became clear there would not be a Mynian.

I realize I never described the setting of the services at Chabad. The building is a formerly elegant summer house from the 1800s, painted white. It is though in an overall shabby, abandoned condition. It has a neglected front yard, with a white stone staircase going up to the first floor landing. A sturdy fence, maybe 4 feet tall, made of black metal seperates the front yard form the sidewalk. Below the fence, on the outside, is a narrow strip of dirt where some weeds have sprouted. The strip has a very low fence, maybe a quarter of a foot tall, made of meshed wire that ties onto metal posts dug into the dirt. This small fence is rusted and hangs loose at various places. I know because I park my bike on the narrow strip. I lift the bike over the little meshed wire and I hook its handrails to the black fence so that my wheel is close enough to it to be able to use my Kryptoite lock to secure the bike. I have many times stumbled on the handing meshed wire and once almost stabbed my self with the protruding supporting post.

Wednesday August 10, 2011

I am starting to be able to read the prayers as fast as the leader. Actually, I think the leader skips passage, especially Peter. There is no way, for example, that he can read the "Wednesday Day of the Wee" psalms in 45 seconds!

August 3, 2011 - Wednesday

The time for the morning service was changed to 7:45 so that more undergrads could come. I still arrived 10 minutes late, which goes to prove my lateness has nothing to do with the service being too early. It is an inner clock deficiency.

I have to recount a discomforting event. Last Friday, having skipped morning services, I decided to make up by going to Minchah and Maariv. Services were at Hillel. I arrived promptly at 8pm. Thunderstorms were breaking up the afternoon. It was hot and humid. The rain, a blessing. I was wearing shorts and a shirt, as usual. As I entered the third floor space I immediately realized my mistake. Everyone was dressed up. Two of the guys I knew from the morning services were there. I liked neither. Something about their faces. They both looked like they were smelling shit all the time. One of them just had had a baby. In any case, the blond one was in a suit, the other one wore long black pants and a white shirt. They looked at me with contempt and ... proceeded to ignore me. OK, I was under-dressed, but hey, it was a mistake. My first time there. What schmocks!!! Well, the service went on, itvwas lovely. Voices raised in unison, un-rehearsed. The women's voices provided a sweet counterpoint, weaving in and out tour melody. Others came by, greeted me. I thought maybe I could pass unnoticed. But lo and behold I was the ONLY one saying Kaddish. The two redeemed themselves by guiding me and indicating when it was my turn to say Kaddish. As soon as the service ended, I slipped out. Hopefully unnoticed!.... not