Monthly Archives: April 2020

“One of Us” – A Searing Look into Brooklyn’s Hasidic Community

Etty Ausch betrothed to a virtual stranger

“One of Us,” is a no holds barred documentary feature illuminating the intricate, almost police state of the Hasidic Jews living in Brooklyn. Originally released in 2017, the film was produced and directed by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady, former members of that biotic community, and illuminates the severe consequences to anyone wishing to leave the safety of that non-secular “state.”

Celebrations in Spain

Valladolid garden

This celebration happened to be in Valladolid, the de facto capital of Castilla y Leon, Spain, also known as the garden city, and the city where Christopher Columbus died. The celebration was incidental to the trip, and something I didn’t expect, but my friends carefully planned to surprise me with a party – and they succeeded!

Pilgrimages: Places I’ll Remember, Part 3

Hampton Court Palace

This is the third installment of Ed Boitano’s series on Pilgrimages. In the second installment, Places I’ll Remember, Part 2, Boitano covered Vincent van Gogh’s final days in Auvers-sur-Oise, the Leaning Bell Tower of Pisa and Princess Grace in Monaco. Still quarantined at home in Southern California, Boitano is doing even more reminiscing these days.

The Hike of Lessons Learned

three friends on a hike to Mt. Baldy

In early 2015, a group of my friends decided to hike up Mt. Whitney, a peak of 14,505 feet in the Eastern Sierras of California. The idea came from our buddy John Marsden. He often was the catalyst of our adventures, and he liked it when his friends could join him on these trips. Many of us in this circle of friends were hikers, and have even done hikes together.

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