Jan's Worlds

Yom Hashoah 2009/Holocaust Remembrance Day

morjan — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 00:12:09 +0000

I am very raarely up this early. Today, I felt extra strength and endurance and a bit of tenacity. We arrived at our synagogue before 6:30 this morning. My Yiddish teacher sat in the pews waiting for his turn. His family had been able to flee from Poland before Hitler invaded it.
I was escorted to a chair by a colleague of mine from Hadassah and she pointed to a sheaf of papers. These were the names of some of those who had lost their lives in the Holocaust. Some were as young as 1 years old. Many of the names were children–3, 5 8, 11 13, 17 years old. These numbers stand out in my memory. I recognized the city name “Chernowitz”–my Dad’s father came from there. Warsaw, Lvov,, Minsk, Paris–some cities names were very hard to pronounce,as were some of the first names and surnames. Yet they were familiar to me– so I continued to read their names undaunted.
Suddenly, I felt a tremendous wave of sorrow come over me. My friend from Hadassah was very concerned and caring. I could stop if it was too hard for me. I took a deep breath–”No, I said. I was alright. Suddenly as I read each name I could feel each child and grownups’s presence urging me on, encouraging me, thanking me –for giving life to his or her name again. Each of these individuals had a life before they were imprisoned and exterminated–no matter how short some of their existences were. They had laughed and cried. Some were old enough to perhaps have fallen in love like I had. Some were young enough to hopefully have been held and cuddled and loved by their parents and zaydehs and bubbehs. 30 minutes went by so quickly, page after page completed, names pronounced for not only the 4 or 5 of us in the sanctuary, but for all those eternal spirits who listened in as we read.
This is not the ending. I want to find out more about some of the names I read.

Missing Those Who Have Gone

morjan — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 23:09:26 +0000

I realize that the title of this post may sound ambiguous. I guess I am one of those who does not like to use the word die–instead I say “passed away.”

In the first 2 and 1/2 months of this year, I have lost 3 very important people in my life, my Uncle Bernie, and my good friends Etta and “Nanni Molly.”

They were not young in chrono-logical age, but Molly at 99 and Etta at 83 were discussing current events and sharing stories up until not too long before their deaths.

My Uncle Bernie became unable to share his witticisms and stories several years ago due to his illness.
I never realized how important the words: “thank you” and “me too” (the latter in response to my saying “I love you”) were.

Then there were my brother-in-law, Jon, and my friends Mae Frances, Vivian, and Al. They were much younger. than the others. Jon, had become a big brother to me. Mae Frances and Vivian were big sisters and inspirations. Al’s death was very sudden.

May 2005 was a very hard moth for me. My father who had been ailing, died unexpectedly. A week later, my friend Thelma who had been sick for six months passed away. That really threw me a curveball even though each of them thanked me for caring in our last conversations.

My Uncle Marty also died unexpect- edly in 2007. I am glad Mom, Maury and I went to visit him not too long before he got sick for the last time.

I have come to realize that there is no easy way to say goodbye to those who I love. I guess that the best farewell present that I can give each of these wonderful people that I have mentioned and the many others in my life who have passed away is to live my life with integrity, just as they did in theirs.

My Train Buddies

morjan — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 00:37:58 +0000

I have been commuting solely by train for almost 20 years. During this time I have met some really phenomenal people.

Some have retired. Some have passed away, sadly much too early. Some have switched jobs and no longer take the train. Others just switched to the bus because it was more convenient for them. Some were at the World Trade Center on 9/11.

Over the years my commuting time has varied from as early as the 6:55 a.m. (train) to as late as the 10:30 a.m. Evenings have ranged anywhere from the 4:55 to the 6:55 p.m.

About a month ago, when I finally returned to riding the train, after a 2 month absence, I was repeatedly greeted with warmth and concern. It’s a great feeling.

Over the years I have sat with cross-stitchers, card players, and people of every walk of life imaginable. Some I might not see for a year or more–but when I do see them, we pick up where we left off –”So, how’s your Jazz book” is one favorite question.

Then there are the conductors. Some have become personal favorites of mine. They are also “train buddies” although on a more formal level.

I have been thinking about writing about my “train buddies” for a while. Then, Friday evening, after I had finished my weekly commute, the news started coming in about the horrific train crash in the Los Angeles area. What a tragedy for all those involved. What a loss for their train buddies.

We who take the train do it for a number of reasons, one of which is the safety of the train commute as compared to car travel.

I want to end this post by saying “Thanks” to all of my train buddies over the years. Whether you realize it or not, your support, gentle kibbutzing, enthusiam, praise and encouragement has meant a lot to me.

NYC

morjan — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 02:48:54 +0000

Tonight was my first foray into the Big Apple in almost 2 months. I had been under the weather for almost the entire summer.

As soon as I hit the top step of the 9th Street PATH Station, I felt like I had never left.

I hit Citarellas first where my favorite deli counter person waited on me. I love Citarellas because I can usually find at least one tasty item to get. Tonight it was the roasted turkey, sliced plus couscous with mushrooms plus grilled vegetables–heavy on the carrots and mushrooms.

Then I went over to Radio Shack where I bought a Canon Power Shot A580 on sale. I held my breath as the salesman went in back to check if the last copy in stock was actually there. I am glad I finally bought a digital camera since I love the scenery in the Bay Area and want to take a lot of pictures.

After supper (@ Starbucks), I went to Barnes & Noble where I picked up the book “1000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die.” I was also looking for “Sway” (which was in) and “The Starfish and the Spider” (which they could order for me), but I decided to hold off buying either.

I am so glad I finally got back to NY tonight. I am making a silent resolution to visit more frequently when I return from our vacation in September.

What to Blog About Today

morjan — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 10:15:19 +0000

It’s 5:38 in the morning–very early for me. Ironically, I am wide awake and at my computer.

But what should I blog about today?

In front of me on my desk lies a copy of Sarah Boxer’s book Ultimate Blogs which I was browsing last night and adding it’s contents to my Bloglines feeds.

Sarah Boxer shares postings from a diverse array of blogs:
AngryBlackBitch, Pamela Merritt

Becker-Posner Blog, Gary S. Becker and Richard Posner

Click Opera, Nick Currie

Cosmic Variance, Sean Carroll

El Guapo in DC, author known as El Guapo

Eurotrash, Delly Hayward

Get Your War On, David Rees

Go Fug Yourself, Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks

How to Learn Swedish in 1000 Difficult Lessons, author known as Francis Strand

I Blame The Patriarchy, Jill Posey-Smith

In The Middle, Raed Jarrar

Ironic Sans, David Friedman

Its raining noodles!, Angelique Chan

Johnny i hardly knew you, Jennie Portnof

Julia {Here Be Hippogriffs}, Julia Litton

Language Log, Benjamin Zimmer

Matthew Yglesias, Matthew Yglesias

Micrographica, Renée French

Midnight in Iraq, Jeffrey Barnett

Nina Paley.com, Nina Paley

Old Hag, Lizzie Skurnick

Radio.Uruguay, Dmitri Goutnik

Rootless Cosmopolitan, Tony Karon

The Rest Is Noise, Alex Ross

The Smoking Gun, William Bastone

Under Odysseus, Mark Katakowski

So why don’t I look at a couple more blogs before I have to get ready for work.

Eurotrash, hmmm. Helsinki is the first post. The second post “Destination 3: New York, New York” catches my eye. I love the pictures. It captures quintessential New York. It’s been added to my Bloglines subscriptions.

El Guapo in DC is no longer blogging. That’s a shame. It looked like a fun blog.

I like Language Log. It’s all things language–and it’s a lot of fun.

A few of my favorite library/librarian related blogs are:

If there were only more than 24 hours in a day — just to read blogs!

YouTube – Me and My Girl The Lambeth Walk Tony 1987

morjan — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 01:52:58 +0000

We’ve been listening to XM Radio’s Showtunes Station for the past couple of nights in the car.

Tonight each of us heard a song that we liked a lot. For Maury, the song was “Lambeth Walk” from the musical Me and My Gal.”

For me it was a song I don’t remember hearing before, “Fat and Greasy” from Ain’t Misbehavin’.

For each of us the songs were catchy.

Musical theater–at least original cast recordings–has been a part of my life since I was a young child.

I remember getting the album “South Pacific” with Mary Martin and Ezio Pinza when I was in fourth grade.

I was already familiar with Mary Martin from her role as Peter Pan in the musical on TV in the early 1960′s.

Thinking of Peter Pan, I started looking around on YouTube and serendipitously, I found a slew of clips from the 1960 telecast. There were so many great songs, Wendy, I Won’t Grow Up, I’m Flying, and my 2 favorites Never Never Land and I Gotta Crow

I feel very moved hearing these last 2 songs. Through this musical, I found a way to transcend my everyday obstacles growing up. Musicals have served this purpose in my life ever since.

Blogging

morjan — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 01:57:59 +0000

I am starting to re-think blogging. I have not been committed to writing my blog for a few months, due to a few personal issues, which have been resolved.

Yesterday, I went to a great program given by BCALA

It was a very insightful presentation given by Denise O’Shea of Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Here’s a video on blogging that Denise spoke about.

By rethinking I mean, I want to consider factors (which Denise pointed out) such as my audience and purpose.

Do I want just one blog or because I have several diverse interests, would it be better for me to have more than one.

At this moment it seems that one is enough.

My Jazz Book–Nearing Completion

morjan — Thu, 22 May 2008 00:22:58 +0000

I have been immersed for the past 4 days with final revisions for my Jazz Book. The corrections/tweeks aren’t taking very long but I am going over each chapter several times to make sure the periods are in the right place, my quotation marks match, formatting is correct, etc. This latter part is more time intensive.

I am very excited though. I can see and feel that the end (of this project) is near. It’s been a huge part of my life since the end of 2001.

A lot has happened in these 6 years–both personally and professionally. The icing on the cake is that I have gotten to work with some great people at the Institute for Jazz Studies at Rutgers-Newark. They have been my support system during this journey into the jazz world.

People Whom I Admire Part 2

morjan — Sun, 11 May 2008 13:38:02 +0000

I am sitting here @ my Mom’s computer. She is about to celebrate her 80th birthday at the end of June. I’d like to share with you some of what I wrote about her several weeks ago.

“It is very inspiring to me that you are filling your life regularly with “acts of loving kindness” whether it’s being creative and reaching out to others as Granny Apple (the clown), your visits to senior citizen daycare centers as a county ombudsperson, making floral bouquets for hospice patients, or becoming a hospice volunteer.

Your TLC, dedication, and support has been a constant for me throughout my life.

I am very impressed and influenced by your creativity–drawing, painting, sculpting–and for the last 3 years, clowning.

I think of you whenever I visit an art museum or gallery.

You also instilled in me a lifelong love of reading and learning. You are an excellent role model, still taking courses and continually teaching yourself new things.

Your tenacity and perseverance has also been a great example for me to follow. I doubt that I would have gotten to where I am today, if you hadn’t constantly shown me by your own example to stick to your dreams and goals and try your best to overcome obstacles along the way.

Another gift you share with me is your love for Jewish culture and religion. This is something that I came to gradually embrace. I was so happy that you were able to hear me read Torah at my Adult B’nai Mitzvah last year. I also enjoy sharing my D’vrai Torah with you. I have enjoyed attending services with you for many years. I love to hear your voice reciting and singing Hebrew prayers.

These are only some of the things about you that I find inspiring.

Happy Mother’s Day!

People Who Have Made a Difference in My Life — Part One

morjan — Wed, 07 May 2008 02:42:49 +0000

Three years ago next Monday will be the 3rd anniversary of my Dad’s passing. Eight days later will also be the third anniversary of the passing of my dear friend and mentor, Thelma Tate.

Two very different people, but maybe more alike than I realized while they were alive. They only met once, at the Project Century 21 poster session in New Orleans in 1993. I was presenting there, Dad and Mom had come to help out, and Thelma was always at ALA Conferences.

Both Dad and Thelma always tried to help others. Dad was a resource person, If someone’s father was a war veteran and had trouble getting prescriptions for a decent price, Dad would suggest the VA Hospital Pharmacy. When my uncle was very sick and Dad saw a program on TV that showed a procedure that he though might help him, Dad let his family know about the procedure, after having me look up more info on it.

Thelma, helped me countless times, finding info for me, putting me in contact with other people in the library world who have become close colleagues, persuading me to write my jazz bibliography (ten years after teaching me how to write an annotation and 3 years after helping me revise a chapter I was writing for a book (which included an annotated bibliography. Many others felt her influence as well. Many weekends she shlepped to different places in the tristate area, gathering new books to be shipped to cultural centers and libraries throughout Africa.

I miss them both very much.

Rest in Peace, Dad and Thelma.

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Tags: IrvingHochstat Thelma Tate