Tu B'Shvat Singles Mixer
Pre-registration is already closed, but please join us Saturday evening for our singles mixer.

Session A, ages 35+: 6:30-8pm (doors at 6:15) sponsored by NExT (Not Exactly Thirties)
Session B, ages 21-39: 8:30-10:00pm (doors at 8:15) sponsored by 20s&30s
Ages 35-39 attend both sessions at no additional charge!

For more information, please see http://20s30s.tremontstreetshul.org/mixer.html

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Tu B'Shvat Singles Mixer 5770
tremontstshul Tu B'Shvat Singles Mixer
Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010
Session A, ages 35+: 6:30-8pm (doors at 6:15)
Session B, ages 21-41: 8:30-10:00pm (doors at 8:15)
Ages 35-41 attend both sessions at no additional charge!

Our singles mixers are now semi-annual by popular demand. Tu B'Shvat, the fifteenth (or full moon) of the month of Shvat, is known as the New Year of the Trees. However, there are also traditions linking it with Tu B'Av (on the opposite end of the calendar) as a sort of "Jewish Valentine's Day". Help us make these traditions a reality! We'll provide kosher wine and cheese, other snacks and beverages, some informal icebreaking activities, and a relaxed environment for mingling. The rest is up to you.

Session A (ages 35+) will be 6:30-8pm. At 8pm, we will clear and reset the room for Session B (ages 21-41), 8:30-10:00pm. Ages 35-41 are encouraged to stick around and attend both sessions at no additional charge.

For all the event details, FAQ, and signup link, see the new Tremont St. Singles Mixer homepage!

... If this event does not apply to you, (a) mazal tov! (b) PLEASE pass the information along to your Boston-area single Jewish friends. The more people we get, the better it is for everyone. (c) We need non-single volunteers to help staff the mixer! Event setup starts at 4:45pm. Email 20s30sinfo@tremontstreetshul.org if you'd like to help out, even for an hour.

(crossposting to bostonjews and weirdjews)

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Sufganiyot
You can get them in Coolidge Corner, or you can get jelly doughnuts and pretend, or you can make your own... but is there anywhere to buy sufganiyot up here on the Camberville side of the river? And if so, have you tried them? What'd you think?

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sigh, sigh
The rain date for mini-golf? Is rained out.
Sorry, guys.

Current Mood: annoyed

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Tu B'Av Singles Mixer (2 Sessions, 35+ and 21-41) Sunday 8/17
Our singles mixers are now semi-annual by popular demand, but Tu B'Av is the original. Tu B'Av, the fifteenth (or full moon) of the month of Av, is traditionally considered a matchmaking occasion and/or an auspicious time for meeting one's beloved. Help us make this tradition a reality! We'll provide wine and cheese, other snacks and beverages, some informal ice-breaking activities, and a relaxed environment for mingling.

This year we are trying a new format: dual sessions!
Session A (ages 35+): 5:30-7pm (doors at 5:15)
Session B (ages 21-41): 7:30-9:30pm (doors at 7:15)
Ages 30-41 are encouraged to stick around and attend both sessions at no additional charge.

Cost: $15 ($12 full-time students). $5 discount with your online registration by 11:59pm on Saturday, August 16, 2008.

You MUST complete the online registration form in order to qualify for the advance-RSVP rate. (Emailing your RSVP does not count for this event.) To speed it up even more, prepay your admission via PayPal (you'll get the link upon successful completion of registration; prepayment is nonrefundable, but may be transferred).

For more information please see our website.

Please pass this information along to anyone else who might benefit from it. The more people who show up the better the event works.

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Shakespeare on the Common, Thurs. 7/31!
Testing the embedded signup form! [Plus, don't forget to sign up for this Friday's Shabbat dinner.]



EDIT: ... Well, AFAICT, that was kind of a wash, unless my browser just does not play nicely with the iframe tags that Google supplied. Anyway, though, the RSVP form for 7/31 is here.

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Comedy tonight
Our Improv Boston outing is tonight -- see you at 7:45! Meet in the bar at their NEW space, 40 Prospect St. (*not* the old location downstairs from gedalia's).

Current Mood: hungry

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BJFF 2007
So, this Boston Jewish Film Festival thing has crept up on us, as usual.

Here are the movies I (a) think would be fun for a TBS group to attend and (b) don't personally have conflicts with. :-}

My Mexican Shivah (Morirse Está En Hebreo)
Monday, November 5, 7:00 pm (Hollywood Hits Premiere Theatre, Danvers; yes, we'd carpool)
Duration: 102 min.
Language: Spanish/Yiddish/Hebrew w/ subtitles

The seven days of mourning, or shivah, of beloved Jewish-Mexican patriarch Moishe Tartovsky is the occasion for a colorful gathering of family, friends and lovers, capped off by a mariachi band singing “Hava Nagila.” The film is based on a short story by Ilan Stavans, and produced by John Sayles and Maggie Renzi, with an original score by the Klezmatics.

Making Trouble
Wednesday, November 7, 8:00 pm (Coolidge Corner Theatre)
Duration: 85 min.
Language: English
In person: Director Rachel Talbot, Executive Producer Gail Reimer, Scholar and Cast Member Barbara Grossman. With live comedy by: Cory Kahaney, Star of NBC's "Last Comic Standing."

This not to be missed irresistible documentary, produced by the Jewish Women’s Archive, profiles six great female comic entertainers: Molly Picon, Fanny Brice, Sophie Tucker, Joan Rivers, Gilda Radner and Wendy Wasserstein. Jewish comics Judy Gold, Cory Kahaney, Jackie Hoffman and Jessica Kirson provide the commentary, schmoozing over lunch at Katz’s Deli in New York City about what it means to be Jewish, female and funny.

Editor's note: Unfortunately, Wed. 11/7 is ALSO the next scheduled meeting date for both the Membership Committee AND the Ritual Committee... :-P
EDIT: HAHAHAHA THIS SHOWING HAS BEEN SOLD OUT FOR THREE WEEKS KTHXBYE

Starting Out in the Evening
Thursday, November 8, 7:30 pm (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston)
Duration: 111 min.
Language: English
Sponsored by: Stella Artois
In person: Director Andrew Wagner

Frank Langella is Leonard Schiller, a 70-year-old Jewish writer whose novels are out of print. An ambitious and seductive graduate student, played by Lauren Ambrose (Six Feet Under), upends his carefully ordered life. Lili Taylor, as Schiller’s 39-year-old daughter, adds another superbly realized character to the mix.

Bad Faith (Mauvaise foi)
Thursday, November 8, 9:15 pm (Coolidge Corner Theatre)
Duration: 84 min.
Language: French w/ subtitles

Director/co-writer Roschdy Zem and the charming Cécile de France star as a Muslim Arab (Ismaël) and a Jew (Clara), respectively, whose carefree, four-year love affair takes a serious turn when Clara discovers she is pregnant. Zem makes an impressive directorial debut in a comic drama that raises challenging questions about family and faith.

What a Wonderful Place (Eize Makom Nifla)
Saturday, November 10, 9:30 pm (Arlington Capitol Theatre)
Duration: 99 min.
Language: Hebrew/English/Russian w/ subtitles

Israel’s Oscar® submission for Best Foreign Film of 2006, this masterful ensemble work invites comparisons both to the films of Robert Altman and to Paul Haggis’ Crash. The paths of a Ukrainian woman ensnared in a prostitution ring, a Thai agricultural worker, and a Philippine caretaker eventually converge in this uniquely Israeli take on the hot-button international issue of immigration.



Current Mood: organizing... ish!

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Photos from ice cream
And sheva brachot


some other recent tbsphotos up at: http://picasaweb.google.com/tbsphotos/

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BBQ in 1.5 hours
In case you want to know how kalessin and I spent the morning... :-) I've finally posted the official Tremont St. BBQ Shopping List online:
http://20s30s.tremontstreetshul.org/bbq.txt

Also, I updated the 20s&30s Links page, and hope to do some more similar maintenance on the main and About pages soon.

See y'all soon!

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A Tremont St. Poll!

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Kosher House in East Cambridge, one mile from Tremont St.
June 1st opening in a HUGE, sunny, & wonderful house in East Cambridge. Two floors plus basement & attic. 3 bedrooms, 1 ½ bathrooms, LARGE eat in kitchen (disposal, dishwasher, gas range, etc.), dinning room, living room. The house was completely gutted before we moved in last June, so everything is new and modern. The room is aprox. 12ft. by 18ft. with closet & many windows. (It’s currently a very comfortable double & could continue to be.) Laundry & parking. Ideal location: bus stops right outside our door, T 5 short blocks away, Inman sq. a 10 min walk , Harvard 2 miles east, MIT 1.5 miles south, & all of the charm that is East Cambridge. Plus, everything one would need (grocery store/gym/cleaners/ MANY stores) within short walking distance.

About us: We are two grad students (male & female) & a cute cat. We co-op food, & maintain a kosher kitchen along with observing Shabbat in common spaces. We are both outgoing & involved in many random and interesting things. You should be interested in a somewhat communal home & must be queer and trans friendly.

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Purim Pictures Posted
I have uploaded the pictures I took at the 20s & 30s club dance, they can be found at http://pics.livejournal.com/redknight/gallery/00006xhw

Current Mood: sleepy

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Purim at TBS
Megillah Reading, Purim Spiel and Raffle
Saturday Mar. 3
6:30 pm - till the cows come home
http://www.tremontstreetshul.org/shulwiki?n=Main.WholeMegillah
Our annual Purim Celebration!

5:30 Children's program -- see the TBS calendar for details
6:30 Megillah Reading
8:00 Purim Spiel
8:30 Purim Raffle -- support the shul AND win fabulous community
prizes! You can even buy tickets ahead (for yourself or others)
online: http://www.tremontstreetshul.org/purim-raffle.html

9:00 pm -1:00 am 20s&30s PURIM BLOWOUT Costume Dance Party w/DJ!

You've been to Tremont St's Simchat Torah... Now there's the PURIM
BLOWOUT!  Purim falls on a Saturday night this year and we're going to
make the most of it by combining it with our legendary '80s Dance
Party. After Megillah reading (6:30pm) and Purimshpiel / Raffle (8pm)
in the TBS main sanctuary, head downstairs for the biggest party in
Shushan, 9pm-1am.

Come in Purim costume, '80s costume, or other creative/fancy dress;
all others (as judged by the doorkeeper) will be assessed an
additional mandatory $5 donation to tzedakah. No exceptions!

Admission $10 ($6 students) with advance RSVP by Thursday; $12 ($8
students) at-door. Dues-paid TBS members receive FREE admission!

21+. RSVP to Erica ( erica @ alumni.brandeis.edu ) by Thursday 3/1/07.

Events continue Sunday Morning.

Current Mood: creative

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Mitzvah opportunity TODAY
[Cross-posted to bostonjews and cambridge_mass, plus my own journal]

URGENT! Marrow Donor Registry Drive
Sunday Jan. 21
10:00 am - 4:00 pm
Temple Beth Shalom (8 Tremont St., Cambridge)
http://tremontstreetshul.org/tbsdirections.html

This Sunday, tremontstshul will host a marrow/stem cell donor registry drive in cooperation with the Caitlin Raymond International Registry: http://www.crir.org/

This drive will add all participants to the national/international marrow donor database. It will also screen for a potential match for a community member's mother, currently fighting lymphoma -- her most promising treatment may be a stem cell transplant, and her treatment center has not yet found a match among the international databases of 10 million donors. (There is a single donor pool for stem cell donation and bone marrow donation. Stem cells can be obtained from either the blood or bone marrow of a donor.)

The patient's family has set up a web site with information on her search and other details:
http://people.csail.mit.edu/klivescu/gabi
The most likely match would be a donor from a similar genetic background. That's where the Jewish community comes in.

If you have ever registered with another marrow donor drive, you are already in the linked databases and there is no need to be typed again. Otherwise -- please come by and add yourself to the registry! The registry process takes only a few minutes and is non-invasive (a cheek swab for tissue typing). Donors should be between the ages of 18 and 60, willing to donate to any patient in need, and be in general good health.

There is no charge to donors to join the registry. However, if you have health insurance in Massachusetts, CRIR asks that you please bring your insurance card. MA law (Chapter 355, Acts of 2000) requires most insurance companies to pay for the HLA testing of its members who volunteer to become registered donors -- so those samples can be processed immediately (instead of waiting for sufficient funds from outside contributors to become available). No one will be turned away at the drive, but your insurance card could be a big help.

More information about the testing and donation process:
http://www.crir.org/registerdonor.html
http://www.crir.org/savelifefaq.html

Other questions, call the synagogue during drive hours: 617-864-6388.

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A Tremont St. poll
Incidentally, we have 22 people signed up for Wine&Cheese as of this morning, so I fully expect at least 30.

For future reference: Guidelines recommend 4oz cheese and 1/2 bottle of wine per guest. Thus, 30 people = 7.5 lbs cheese, 15 bottles wine; 40 people = 10 lbs cheese, 20 bottles wine. (In fact, this probably explains why last year we only went through 1 case, with about 24 people. Ha.) So far, we've bought 4 lbs at Trader Joe's, but are making the main Butcherie run this evening at 5:30. If you have requests, get 'em in now! (Watch this space on Thursday for the rundown.)

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Trivia Night update
We have a 7:45pm reservation for 20 people at Tommy Doyle's tonight (the Harvard Sq location on Winthrop St., formerly the House of Blues).

Trivia ends around 10pm, so some of us will proceed over to the Middle East thereafter to deliver birthday greetings to Estye. >:-)

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as many of you know, it's traditional at tremont street to make etrog vodka out of your lovely $40 citrons.
but everyone's making vodka (gedalia, dave, linda, barbara, everyone), so if you don't make it, you'll still be able to have plenty of it at purim and next sukkot.
so why not help me do something different?
i'm going to make candied etrog peel, and i'd like your help.
right now, i only have two etrogs, which is enough to make a small amount, but i'd love to make more and be able to share.
if you've got an etrog and you're not making vodka, would you please give it to me?
(if i get enough, i might try to make jelly out of the flesh, too.)
i'll happily share the results with you.

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Simchat torah this saturday night

Our legendary block party hakafot celebration, this sat night starting at 7:00 pm, spread the word. Details/directions at http://www.tremontstreetshul.org/

Current Mood: bouncy

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Am Tikva at Tremont St.
In the works since last week's BBQ:
Am Tikva is going to come join us for services and the sukkah potluck on my birthday Erev Sukkot! Rah!

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