I find this very strange, but when I watched http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjXyqcx-mYY
I found myself reduced to tears.

Why? Is it just that I'm a sucker for shmaltz? Maybe.

But I think it's because, for so very, very long, I have not been willing to believe ... to hope ... for something better in American politics. After the 8 years of the current Bush regime, a regime which I believe is not legitimate in many ways, the possibility of a kind of political resurrection is something I dared not hope for.

And now, although I was not an early Obama supporter, I have something like a modicum of hope. I believe not only that Obama would handily beat John McCain (something I don't think Hilary could do, because people just don't really like or trust her), I believe he would be a great President.

Being filled with hope as to the U.S....I pray to God, Goddess, and All That Is that Barak Obama is elected President, that he is kept safe, that he is allowed and aided in doing the kind of work that, as it turns out, only he can do at this juncture in American history.

"Charisma" is technically defined as "the gift of grace," and more specifically, it refers to the ability of a leader to foster change in his or her followers. I did not know, until today, until watching this song, that Barak Obama does indeed have charisma, and I invite you to look at this video, allow yourself to hope, and then go out there and work on his behalf.

-- A Political Message From Someone Who Is Surprised To Be Offering A Poitical Message

There may be no better physical exercise than rebounding: it is fun, easy, safe, con-venient, and powerfully effective; its proven effects include immune system boost, aerobic training, flexibility gain, and weight loss or redistribution; it may also make your cells, bones, and the rest of you stronger, gravitationally, from the “inside out.”

Rebounding is more powerful than it may look: go slowly at first, and always be conscious, aware, and safe when you are on, near, or getting on/off a rebounder.

Choose a high quality rebounder; you’ll be glad you did in the short and long run.

 If you need a stabilizer bar, get one, but many people won’t need one, and your balance and ability to safely bounce and stay on will rapidly improve.

Bounce without socks and shoes if you can, and bounce outdoors when you can!

Make it a high priority is to keep rebounding for whatever minimum time you set; to do this, pick five or six basic (natural enjoyable) moves that you can always come back to – e.g., jumping jack, torso twists, arm circles, running in place, etc.

Time flows easily with music, television, meditation, phone, or bouncing with others.

When rebounding, always allow and encourage yourself to fully breathe – the master key to health and healing – letting your shoulders and pelvis relax, and filling your body with as much air and energy as possible, as you work through, dissolve, and release stuck physical and energetic patterns.

If you ever get out of breath, just relax and keep bouncing, and the rebounder will begin to breathe you, move you, and recharge your energy.

There are thousands of different ways to use a rebounder, many of which will be unique to you, e.g., just slightly turning your hands can totally change the effects of a jumping jack, and barely raising your heels can fully alter your leg usage.

A rebounder is a kind of universal machine in that almost any other type of physical practice (ballet, martial arts, skiing, etc.) can be brought to it – try what you like!

Rebounding is a universal inner practice as well, as almost any other type of interior, psychological, emotional, or spiritual practice (meditation, mantra, mandala, visualization, chanting, singing, sound play, etc.) can be brought to it.

Hand weights may be good for a part of a workout, but keep them light, don’t whip them around, and bounce without them before ending your workout. Experiment with other apparatus as well -- magic rings, stretchy bands -- but always be gentle and thoughtful.

 Rebounding is a precious, amazing, and vital gift to give to yourself and to others!

I lived at on 226th St., in Laurelton, New York, in the borough of Queens (part of New York CIty) from the time I was 2 until the time I was 14.

I remember the house very well. It was white on the outside, and had two little railed off areas on either side of the front door that you could climb into. We had a little lawn, with a mimosa tree that got broken in half by my friend David but which survived to become a mighty tree.

The backyard also had a towering tree, an elm, I think, and there was a "secret passage" to the neighbors house on the other side of the block.

It was a 3-story home. The basement had these bizarre patterns on the floor in the boiler room, and then my sister made the basement her room when she was a teenager. There was also a mirrored  bar down there, but nobody drank in my home so we just used it for storage.

The main floor: a front door with a bizarre glass pattern that looked like a distorted face to me. You came in, and there was the piano to your immediate left. (See pic.) I used to crawl through the legs of the piano until I got too big. We had a nice dining room, a kitchen that was separated into two parts by counters, and thick glass-block windows at the end of the kitchen through which diffuse light streamed in. Then there was the den, where I watched TV. On the way into the den there was the cookie cabinet, and my mom always kept that stocked.

Upstairs were 5 bedrooms. My bedroom, when my brother and grandmother were still in the house, had to be passed through to get to their rooms. Later on, when my brother went to college, I took over his room, and his collection of Famous Monsters of Filmland magazines (and Playboys).

It was a warm, happy house, and my parents had lots and lots of "company" as they called it. (They were very very active in the local synagogue.)

I went back to the "big house," as my mom still calls it, about 15 years ago. Laurelton has become a very different place now, and when I rang the front bell and asked if I could come in and see my childhood home, the woman who answered looked very suspicious -- probalby thought I was a cop or something worse -- and said "no."

But my memroies are very vivid ... the snow falling ... the leaves ... seeing my breath and/or "punks" in the garage at night ... rolling on the front lawn with my magnificent cat Snoopy...those were the days, eh?

-- Jordan

OK, is my synagogue cool or not? The only thing we're missing is a sitar...the practice was a gas. I love singing my heart out. Two years ago, after my dad died, I inspired a led a Leonard Cohen Shabbat, which was also a gas.

I'm still not "seriously" Jewish in the sense of the theology, but community is community, and this one is familiar to me. See my previous blog entry on how fun it was to discover a cool Rabbi.

OK, gotta go bounce.

00 J.