When someone dies, the family and friends left behind inevitably search for reasons or meaning. Many people turn toward organized religion as a means of coping, yet in Judaism, its not coping that is important, its transformation. This is the purpose of the Kaddish prayer, an ancient Aramaic prayer said in a quorum of 10…
Author Archives: Alex
Dennis Carey Joins Board of Directors of Scanbuy
In recent news, Dennis Carey of Korn/Ferry International has joined the board of directors of Scanbuy. Scanbuy is a provider of mobile barcode solutions. As Mike Wehrs, the recently appointed interim CEO and president of Scanbuy said, “The Board is pleased to have Dennis as its newest member to further guide Scanbuy as the company…
Storms Batter the New York Area
Intense Wind and Rain Blast the New York Region – NYTimes.com A combination of driving winds and intense rains left hundreds of thousands without power and created serious obstacles to traveling distances both short and long around the New York metropolitan area on Saturday. Earlier in the day, gusts of more than 60 miles per…
Designing a New Policy For Knock Off Fashion
New York City officials destroyed tons of new, unworn clothing and footwear last year that had been seized in raids on counterfeit label operations, abandoning a practice of giving knockoff garments to groups that help the needy. Some heads need to get knocked together over this. I understand perfectly why copyright holders would have concerns,…
Brooklyn’s Strongman Dead at 104
The Times reports: On Monday morning, Mr. Rollino went for a walk in his Brooklyn neighborhood, a daily routine. It was part of the Great Joe Rollino’s greatest feat, a display of physical dexterity and stamina so subtle that it revealed itself only if you happened to ask him his date of birth: March 19,…
An Afternoon Browsing Brooklyn Boutiques With the Gray Lady
The Times invites us to spend 36 hours in New York City, and suggests that 1 p.m. is the perfect time to visit Brooklyn. Hmmm, well OK. If you’re wandering around Brooklyn of an afternoon, there are certainly worse places to shop than the boutiques they profile, including my favorite, the Chocolate Room. Once known…
Brown Rice Capitalist – A Digression About Whole Foods
Brian Lehrer did an interesting interview with Nick Paumgarten, the author of last week’s New Yorker profile of Whole Foods CEO John Mackey. John Mackey, the co-founder and chief executive of Whole Foods Market, refers to the company as his child — not just his creation but the thing on earth whose difficulties or downfall…
Whole Foods To Clear the Hole in Gowanus
Hopes fading for Brooklyn’s very own Whole Foods on the banks of the Gowanus Canal Prospects are dimming for a Whole Foods on the banks of the Gowanus Canal. Now, even company officials concede they have no clue if they’ll ever build a store along the polluted waterway. On again, off again, on again, off…
Brooklyn Wins a Literary Prize
Colm Toibin Takes Costa Book Awards Fiction Prize – NYTimes.com Irish writer Colm Toibin was named novelist of the year Monday in Britain’s lucrative Costa Book Awards for his emigrant saga ”Brooklyn.” The judges praised Toibin’s ”poised, quiet and incrementally shattering” story about a young Irishwoman in the 1950s caught between a new life in…
Charlie Hunter Begins Brooklyn Residency
Extraordinary guitarist Charlie Hunter is playing a month-long residency at Rose Live Music in Williamsburg. For four straight Tuesdays you can catch his mastery of the 7-string guitar, recently showcased on his new album Gentlemen, I Neglected To Inform You You Will Not Be Getting Paid. Tickets are available via Brown Paper Tickets. For a…
