I stopped cold turkey & it’s been about 10.5 yrs. since & haven’t gone back to it. It’s probably one of the best things I did for myself. Besides, I don’t have it in my apt. anymore-I gave it back to my Parents.

I use Dr. Zyskind-she’s very nice & she’s very good. I’ve been using her for a few yrs. now & I’m pretty satisfied w/ her work so far. Her place is in Brooklyn on Nostrand Ave. bet. N & O. Her place is called Dentique.

There are a number of songs which are my very favorite songs. But one of my very favorite songs are from the days of yesteryear is from Avraham Fried’s very first album, No Jew will be left behind – “Return” – first of all, I love the tune of the introduction to it, secondly, it’s a very heartzig & warm song in my honest humble opinion. After this one, there’s a whole list of songs which I love as well-but the list might be too long to put in here.

It’s basically the meaning of my name & I liked the way it sounded.

I say that it’s definitely worth it since the speakers that will be speaking for that Shabbos are AMAZING speakers. If I could do it, I would. I just don’t know yet what if anything is happening in my family for Shabbos Chanukah.

They’re having for that Shabbaton Charlie Harary. He is an amazing,exceptional, inspiring & very humorous speaker!! If you can go, then Go for it-you won’t be sorry you went at all!!

Lemonysnicket & snjn I share in your pain & difficulty in dealing w/ IBS since I can relate to the issues that you both talk about here. But, can you please tell me what you’re supposed to do when you feel a real low of energy & also weakness & fatigue after having a long & difficult session in the bathrm due to a combination of major constipation & looseness in your bm? I have such a hard time in the mornings which also causes me to be delayed in getting in to my job. Thank goodness that I was off from work today, cause I don’t know how I would’ve handled that!! I felt so miserable a whole day!!

Here is a copy of an E-mail on this topic which I received recently from someone I know that I’d like to share w/ you:

Focusing on Doing Good During Elul

What things should you do during Elul to make this month a productive and accomplishing month, so that you can look back at the end of the month and say, “Wow! I really changed!”?

The thing to focus on now is asay tov – doing good things before you focus on the sur may’ra – refraining from doing bad. This means that you should concentrate on doing all the good things you are doing each day and just add a little something to make it even better.

(From: Leket Reshimos on Elul – R’ Nosson Meir Vachtfogel)

Here are some suggestions:

When it comes to davening, you can try to daven with a little bit more Kavannah than usual. Look into your siddur. Say the words a drop slower than usual. Say them loud enough so that you can hear each word that you say. Sing a song that will inspire you before you start the next part.

If you are walking down the street or in the grocery store, look out for opportunities to help other people. Hold the door open for others on your way in and out. Offer to help someone find a specific item. Smile at the woman ringing up your purchases. Help someone carry their bags to the car. Put your shopping cart back where it belongs. Do these things with a smile.

Help your mother out cheerfully. Ask her what she needs before she asks you. Or better yet, do it without being asked. Be extra kind to your siblings. Speak softly even when they are getting you annoyed.

Walk into work every day for the next week (or more, if that’s possible) with a smile. Say good morning with a happy tone of voice and facial expression to your coworkers. Try to be extra pleasant when talking on the phone to clients and take the extra moment to think about them and what you can do to help them in the best way possible.

Before you eat a meal, be it breakfast, lunch or supper, look at the food you are about to eat and thank Hashem in your heart for giving you so much bounty-so many choices of foods, so many colors and tastes. Then, after you thought about it for a minute, go ahead and make the proper bracha.

Putting those extra seconds of thought into it just before you eat your meal can help you have real kavannah when you make a bracha.

On your way out of the bathroom, think for a minute about how lucky you are to be able to go by yourself, without the help of anyone, without needing machines hooked up to your body. The fact that your body works so well on it’s own is a real, true miracle! So take those extra 20 seconds to say the words of asher yatzar slowly and carefully!!

Before you leave your house in the morning, look in the mirror and ask yourself do I look good? What does good mean? YOU and only you can define that word.

Are you neat and put together? Are you walking outside and making a kiddush Hashem with the way you dress, the way you walk and the way you talk?

Throughout your day, look out for ways to do little things – little things that will make a big difference in the lives of other people and in your own life. Now that we are in Elul, it is time for you to focus on being proactive, on doing as many positive mitzvos as possible so that you can tip the scales in your favor. Hashem is here! He is close to us! He wants to give us all the brachos and good things!

It’s up to you to make it happen. By concentrating on how you can improve the things you are doing one little notch, one level higher, you can make this year a good one.

Hatzlacha Rabba to one & all!!!!!!

Wow! That is beautiful & amazing! If only everyone would be thinking just like you, things would be so much more different. If only, if only…..I wish people would be this way.

In the unfortunate story of Leiby Kletzky A”H, there was a lot of Achdus & a Kiddush Hashem which was brought about by all of Klal Yisroel here in our community & people out of town who came to help & give their support. And then after the Levaya when things were starting to quiet down, it seemed like even though our community was still in a state of shock & fear, the whole Achdus theme seemed to me like it was going down hill unfortunately. So as the famous question goes “why do we have to wait for a terrible tzara to befall upon someone in Klal Yisrael in order to become more B’achdus”? Don’t wait for the tzara to happen!! Why can’t the Achdus & Mentschlichkeit amongst people (be it people from our own circles or even Goyim-like those we deal w/ in business or someone behind the cash register…) be more of a natural thing by us yidden? Can you all imagine how HKB”H would be smiling down upon us if we would all be more B’achdus & more Mentschlich to all those around us in a more natural way like it’s a part of us & it’s not something that needs thinking about cause to us it would be very normal & natural for us to behave in this type of mannerism w/ other people? When will we ever learn to do things right for once & for all?

I’m sorry if I’m coming down on you people a little too strong, but it hurts to see how some people amongst us behave & how some people just never learn their lesson from before!!

Well Kol Hakovod to you “Always runs with scissors fast” & may you always be a great source of inspiration to all those around you!!!!!

I work for a R.E. Management Co.-I do the secretarial work (accts. payable, clerical work….)They sure keep me busy!!!!!!!

My daughter has been there since day 1 that the camp has opened (when it was called Segula)& she absolutely has loved every single year of it – every summer she has a blast & when she comes home after the summer, she always has loads of stories to tell me along w/ all her pictures that she has in her camera & the newsletters that they give out at the end of each trip, etc……

Wow!! Amazing, Mi K’amcha Yisroel!!!! What a truly inspiring story!!

B.P. since birth.

I’m not a big Carlebach fan at all-but, I do like a select few of his songs.

I happened to have been at the Ohr Naava Shabbaton this winter which was really nice I must say. They had the Mezamrim choir there along w/ Dovid Stein, Avrumi Flam, Lipa Schmeltzer, Ohad Moskowitz. Well, when it was time for Havdalah, they had the Mezamrim choir do the singing of the Havdalah & I’m not sure who, but someone was playing the guitar & Dovid Stein was holding the Hadalah lecht & they shut the lights. They were singing the nigunim from Carlebach & I must tell you-it was a sight to behold, seriously!! It was so beautiful I’ve never seen a Havdalah done in that manner w/ music & w/ a choir singing. It was just amazing!!!!

Can anyone tell me how are you able to type in hebrew text in here. I do happen to have hebrew fonts in my computer. But how can I put it into my text if I wanted for example to put something in hebrew in my text in here? Is there a special code or do you need to import (do a copy & paste) it from Davka or the like type of program?

Hi eclipse, I really liked your poem-you did a great job in your description. I can really relate to it in a sense when dealing w/ my teenage daughter.

p.s.:Sorry to go off topic a bit, not only has the technology changed so, so much, but lately so has the level of tznius changed in this very generation of ours. It’s something which is really sad to see & upsets me quite a bit.

I have my phone/internet line w/ Matzavnet. The technicians were not able for some odd reason to help me out. They told me to call the company from my printer/fax machine. Well, I’ve been on the phone w/ them this past wk. for quite some time. Part of my problem is, is that when I call them, I need to call from my cell phone cause both my reg phone & my fax line go on the same line. If they need me to do certain functions on the machine & then do a test fax, so I cannot call them on my reg. phone. So I call them from my cell phone & no matter whether it was just charged or if it’s still in the charger, but, I still many times lose my calls. So I need to keep calling them back & then I wind up speaking each time to a different tech. representative & even though they have the notes from the previous rep., I still need to go over w/ them my problem w/ my fax machine. So the first couple of reps. were telling me that I needed a new one. Then the other ones were telling me that the phone jack that goes from the back of the fax mach. has to lead to a wall jack. However, although mine was in a phone jack, but it wasn’t in a wall jack. So the guy told me to get a longer phone jack. Well I finally got a much longer one & since I already have a diff. wire connected to the jack in the wall, so I put that double jack piece into the wall jack & put both of the jacks into it, but I still have a problem w/ it. In order for me to speak w/ the co., I need to wait now until Monday to speak w/ them-they’re not open on Sunday.

After 10:00 P.M., too busy w/ taking care of other stuff first.

Also, sorry to get off the tangent everyone, but can anyone tell me if they might know – if I needed help from Verizon to come to my apt. to help me out w/ checking my phone connections inside my apt. cause I’m having a problem w/ my fax machine (I have an all in one printer) I cannot send or receive any faxes & there seems to be a problem w/ the communication &/or maybe the wiring-would they come to me even if I’m not a customer of theirs? If they wouldn’t, then whom can I call to help me out w/ resolving my issue?

To eclipse, Refuah Sh’laimah. I hope your antibiotics works for you & that it takes away all of your ear/tooth pain.