Not JUST another day around here........or maybe it is.

So........I read the blogs and get the messages about how people's lives are changing and evolving.  Not so much for me these days, not that that's a bad thing or anything.  But I do want to share a few things that I DO deal with, some not so monumental and others are pretty much like Chinese puzzles.

Yesterday was Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.  Don't mark it on your calendars; it moves around because we Jews operate on a lunar calendar just to throw everyone else off.  But what I wanted to say was that I became a part of a ritual when I came out and joined the Synagogue so many years ago (1995).  After services, which usually end at around 12:30 p.m. (unless the rabbi's on a roll and gets all expansive on us) some of us (I was invited to this my first year for whatever reason) convene to an area around Portland Maine knows as Back Cove where we perform a ritual called Tashlich, or casting your bread upon the waters.  (Here's a funny version of how to do it if you ever feel so obligated:  http://www.badpets.net/Humor/Religion/JewishBread.html).  It's all women in this case(except for the small children of said women), mostly gay or allies/family of gay women. Anyway, it's after Tashlich that the fun begins, as we retire to a local restaurant (usually Oriental oriented) for a lazy afternoon of catching up.  It is great to see everyone;   I was the first trans woman inducted into the league of recreational Oriental meals attendees.  All I can say is that if you ever get to Portland, Maine, go to Veranda Noodles! 

Next week, for the non-aware Gentiles out there, is Yom Kippur the holiest day of the Jewish year.  You are supposed to fast but my rabbis have told me that G*d understands critical illnesses and since S/he won't intercede, it's okay for me to not fast.  That's good because I hate going without food and dying.  But BEFORE Yom Kippur there are traditional meals and for 'my community' there is the ever present pot luck dinner.  On top of that, after the final service for Yom Kippur there is the equally traditional 'breaking the fast' meal.  Now when I was a child, the tradition was for everyone to go to my aunt and uncle's for a huge whoop-dee-do.  Nowadays, it's pot lucks.  So I have to decide.....do I bring the tsimmis (look it up) casserole to the PRE fasting and the green bean casserole to the AFTER fasting or visa versa.  SUCH A DILEMMA!  Actually.....either way it will be joyous and full of tumult and chazurah as a couple of hundred Jews jump all over the food. 

Another thing that always gets me excited is the semi-annual fund raiser for our community radio station, WMPG.  This effort is called our Beg-A-Thon where we intersperse our normal diverse programming with pleas to help keep us on the air.  Kinda like NPR or your local PBS affiliate except without the hoity-toity, stuffy windbags sucking you in with expensive gifts to justify their ludicrous salaries.  WMPG, aside from the three paid management (one of whom is a sister trans person), runs strictly on volunteerism.  And since my friend helped me design my own 'brand' to launch the program I do; Trans.Missions; I end up getting 'stuff' to use as additional enticement for listeners in lieu of just making a donation to the station.  But I am facing a problem; yeh I know, it's MY problem.  lol.  I launched Trans.Missions on January 3rd and my first current on-air Beg-A-Thon was in March.  I was assigned a nominal goal of 4 calls with an attempt to raise $200.  What I got was 24 calls with about $1000.  So now, with B-A-T a week away, I have to figure out how to beat THAT.  *sigh*  Not that they'd throw me off the air but thirty minutes isn't a lot of time to plead your case. 

Anyway.........another thing I am excited about (doesn't seem to take much does it?) is that WMPG is part of a national network of community radio stations.  Yearly, we carry a special in October illustrating the plight of the homeless and every year, eight of the participating stations are selected to bring in a locally produced hour.  This year, WMPG is one of those stations and, as a member of the project, get a small part.  Hopefully, the interview I am prepping with a holeless trans youth will make it to the national audience.  THAT would be cool as a moose!

And the last effort I will mention is that I am involved in is at my Synagogue, where I am the current person running our Judaica Shop (where Jews buy Jewish stuff).  It's not a large shop but it is a nice one and I am hoping that my own stewardship of the Judaica Shop will be a good influence.  I love merchandising, I get to shop and pick out cool stuff and hopefully make many (Jewish) people happy.

So I guess that's about it.  No SRS in my future but that's okay.  I have an otherwise pretty cool life going and although the Southern Maine Mah Jongg Mavens seem to be on hiatus I suspect that as the cold weather approaches we'll find time to get back together.  Oh (and here's my shameless pandering thing.  lol) and if you are near your computer and are so compelled, check out Trans.Missions at www.wmpg.org.  I'm on every Tuesday; why that's today!; from 1 - 1:30 p.m. eastern and am archived at www.DAR.fm.  Just put WMPG in the station box and you'll find me.  It's not always smooth but it's a real trans-centric news broadcast warts and all.

Everyone have a great day and keep on doing what you're doing.................................. unless it's killing you!