Do you remember the thrill of getting behind the wheel for the first time as an independent driver with a brand-new license tucked in your pocket or purse? Do you recall volunteering to do errands for your parents, just so you could drive the family car? Did you, like me, pick up a friend – or two or three – and zip carefree to the beach or out for an ice cream?

  Back in the “good old days,” as soon as you thought you were ready to take the test, you just went in and took it. Some people,

Is there a Yiddle who has not heard the word mehtseeuh? Ask any Jewish person the meaning of the word – just out of curiosity, of course – and you should get some interesting responses.

You see, mehtseeuh has several connotations, depending not only on the content but also on facial expression and body language.

For example, Yankel Zetser notices an ad for a “once in a lifetime” coat sale. He excitedly drives to Yenem’s Clothing Outlet. After entering the store, he rushes to the coat section and searches for his size. He finds a coat with the previous $200 price

I happened to be humming the Yiddish song that begins, “Where shall I go? – Vee ahin zol Ich gain?” The lyrics lament our historical tsoress, fleeing from one country to another because of our religion. The solution to the question is presented at the conclusion of the tune: “Not to New York, not to Florida – but to Eretz Yisrael!” A nearby listener commented, “Yitzchak, you haven’t been in Israel for several years. Voss fahr ah Yid bist do – what kind of Jew are you? Are you planning to take a trip to Aretz?”

  I shrugged my

Is there a Yid who doesn’t know the meaning of the word “tsoress”? If you are such a person, “hats off” to you! Simply stated, the meaning of the word tsoress is troubles – but it isn’t that simple!
  Tsoress can be categorized into groyseh (big) tsoress, gehakteh (medium) tsoress, klayneh (small) tsoress, and teefeh (deep) tsoress. Regardless of its category, tsoress is referred to as “tsoress oyf kahpawress.” (In other words, we need it like the chicken needs what happens to it after being whirled around our heads before Yom Kippur.)

  Nu, you may ask, how do

Once upon a time, when our techter (daughters) were kinderlach (tots), I often asked them, “What’s the main thing?” Their response: “To be a mentch!” It was a doctrine that we “drilled” into their kepelach (minds). Yet being a mentch was challenging at times because of situations that arose at school or in the community. When there was a situation that warranted discussion, we had a family meeting and reviewed the problem. Next we discussed the boundaries of being a mentch.

  Voss hayst? What do you mean? you may ask. Iz dehr enfehr, the answer is that at times

As my fellow writer Margie Pensak mentions in an article in this issue, the average American changes jobs between 10 and 15 times between the ages of 18 and 44, and may change careers between three and seven times. But why? What makes people face the uncertainty of a new job or go to the bother of learning new skills altogether? Mrs. Pensak mentions some of the many reasons, but I thought it might also be interesting to discuss what’s involved in various jobs, including self-employment. What aspects of a job give the worker a feeling of satisfaction? Obviously, this