Where What When Magazine

Weatherization The Home Improvement Program You May Qualify For

When people think of home improvement, they usually picture a new kitchen, bathroom, or flooring. But one of the most impactful home improvements – especially in Maryland – is weatherization. It lowers energy bills, makes homes more comfortable, and in many cases costs the homeowner nothing at all.

I’ve helped many families apply for weatherization over the past few years, and the feedback is almost always the same: “I wish I had done this sooner.”

I usually apply for my clients for weatherization as an add-on without even telling them, and this year I got calls out of the blue thanking me very much for helping them with the weatherization – in some cases including new furnaces – because now their house is in better shape.

What Is Weatherization?

Weatherization focuses on making your home more energy efficient. The goal isn’t cosmetic; it’s comfort, safety, and lower utility bills. Depending on the home, this can include:

· Insulation (attic, walls, crawlspace)

· Air sealing and draft reduction

· Duct sealing

· Ventilation improvements

· Energy-efficiency upgrades related to heating and cooling

Chovos Halevavos A New Editon of a Timeless Masterpiece

Reviewed by Chaim Yehuda Meyer

Once asked about how he became who he was, Rabbi Avigdor Miller responded that he learned Chovos Halevavos (Duties of the Heart) daily. This classic sefer was written in the early eleventh century by Rabbeinu Bachya Ibn Pakuda, a dayan in Sargossa, Spain, then under Muslim rule. It is one of the earliest mussar sefarim and is widely known as the bedrock of mussar. Indeed, Rabbi Chaim Soloveichik of Brisk called Chovos Halevavos the “Shulchan Aruch of Yiddishkeit,” and it was studied by such far-flung gedolim as Rabbi Yosef Karo,author of the Shulchan Aruch, the Vilna Gaon, and by all communities across the centuries.

Rabbeinu Bachya wrote in a sophisticated, philosophical style, in Arabic, to reach the masses. The sefer’s Hebrew translation mirrors this style, making it difficult to understand his main points. All this has changed with the recent publication of The Concise Chovos Halevavos: Timeless Wisdom in an Easy-to-Read Format, edited by Rabbi Ilan Siegel and Rebbetzins Devorah Eisenbach and Miriam Samsonowitz.

“Batteries Not Included” And Not Needed!

Let me take you back to the days of “yesteryear.” No, I am not a retired lone ranger on disability with an Indian sidekick but a twelve-year-old boy born in Baltimore on Lakewood Avenue. I am wearing a yarmulka with a belt in back (Ivy League style) or sometimes a blue felt “Yid lid” marked with the luchos and “TA,” my school.

Growing up, we also knew about other letters, such as “AA,” which meant Alcoholics Anonymous, and “AAA,” which stood for the American Automobile Association. Fast forward about 40 years, and today, these letters indicate battery size. What would we do without batteries, the crucial “energizers” that help run our society? Back in my youth, we were very resourceful and didn’t require or value batteries. In fact, we got along very nicely without them. Our energy came from within, and our games were child-created and directed – no carpools, no fatherly coaching – and just fun.

Musings Through a Bifocal Lens: WhatsThat?

It was in one of my psychology classes back in college that I first learned about that dog – the one who was trained to salivate upon hearing a bell. It was amazing to hear how a dog, which naturally hungers for a piece of juicy meat, could replicate that exact craving after simply hearing a bell ring. This was a well-known story and one that became a common cliché. But to think it could actually apply to me was preposterous – or so I thought. Who knew that some 40 years later, I would turn into exactly that, minus the fur and the wagging tail, of course.

It’s been about nine years since I’ve owned a smartphone. Back then, it was an enticing gadget, and I reasoned that my children were grown and gone so I didn’t need to be concerned about their chinuch. I dove into this new world headfirst and soon became part of the crowd.

From Budapest to Baltimore: A Profile of Mrs. Klara Margaretten

It is one thing to learn about history from books; it is another to hear about it from people who lived it. I visited Mrs. Klara Margaretten, a Baltimore senior, who shared her interesting life story.

Mrs. Margaretten is the mother of Judy Landman and Lazer Margaretten of Baltimore. Her husband was Yaakov Mordechai Margaretten, the younger brother of Moshe Magaretten, who used to be in the chicken business in Baltimore, and later ran the kitchen at Ner Yisrael. Klara’s husband was the youngest of 14 children, of whom only five brothers survived the Holocaust.

After the Attack

by Ezra May, Melbourne, Australia

Special to the Where What When

Until erev Chanukah this year, Australia – despite having a Jewish presence dating back to 1788 – had never experienced a fatal antisemitic terror attack. That grim distinction was shattered when a father and son carried out a shooting attack, draping an ISIS flag on their vehicle before opening fire. The Jewish world was in shock, and in Australia, the attack fell like a bombshell, shattering the illusion of a society free of antisemitism.

Not many people are familiar with the history of Jewish Australia, but, until recently, it was indeed a place where Jews flourished in a climate of peace and tolerance.

Wedding Stories Laughter Is the Best Medicine

Weddings are a major life event that often leave us with stories to share. Some of them are distressing at the time but are often funny in retrospect. Here are a few stories, culled from neighbors and friends.

Better than a Debutante

My own story happened when I was a young woman soon to be married. I told my mother, a”h, who was working, that I could find a bridal gown on my own. So, I rode a bus to downtown Baltimore and walked into a small bridal shop. I was the only customer, but the sales lady didn’t ask if she could help me. Instead, she said, “These gowns are for high society debutantes.”

I didn’t know what to say. With my face flushed, I left the store and crossed the street to Hochschild Kohn or Hutzler department store (I forgot which one). There I found pink bridesmaid dresses for my attendants to order, and I ordered a bridal gown for myself. It looked a little like the high society ones. Several weeks later, getting close to my wedding, I went downtown to pick up the gown, tried it on, and said, “I don’t like it.”

Siam: Jerusalem Con Artist

May 29, 4:10 p.m. I am returning to the Gan HaPaamon (Liberty Bell Garden) municipal parking lot after a very depressing meeting with someone. The day before, my 2018 Toyota Landcruiser was serviced at an official dealership in Givat Shaul, and they told me that there might be some lingering problem with the airbag warning light. They also told me that I needed to balance the front tires.

Adjacent to the parking lot was a Sonol gas station, and right behind it was a small auto garage, tire shop, and carwash. I drove the car in and told the manager, who called himself Mohammed Siam, to balance the tires. He opened the lid to the engine (why?!) and started poking and yanking around things, making me a bit nervous. Then he told me that there was a problem with the airbag indicator light. I got the impression from him that the light was just a symptom of a much more serious problem. He invited me to sit in his office, and in a few minutes he would give me an estimate for the cost.

In the small, messy office, there was a desk with a sign that read, “The BOSS,” and behind it a picture of an older man posing at a similar type of joint. I gathered it was probably his father. (I was right.)

Mohammed came back and told me that he had uncovered a serious problem and that it was dangerous to drive the car in its present state. Due to my depressive state of mind, my thinking was murky. I imagined the airbag inflating while I was driving at high speeds and causing me to crash, G-d forbid. He said it would take a few hours to fix but it was too late to wait for the car today. Instead, I should leave the car with him overnight, and he would have it for me the next day.

Your Metabolic Health And How to Improve It

What is metabolic health, anyway?

Metabolic health refers to your body’s ability to efficiently convert food into energy and extract the nutrients it needs for optimal health. When your metabolism is working properly, you experience more sustained energy, fewer cravings, easier weight maintenance, better mood, and mental clarity.

Unfortunately, 88% (some say 93%!) of U.S. adults are metabolically unhealthy. Metabolic dysfunction is at the root of obesity and most chronic ailments, such as pre-diabetes or diabetes, high blood pressure, high triglycerides (which increase the risk of a stroke), fatty liver disease, mood swings, and even depression. Metabolic syndrome refers to the whole cluster of ailments caused by metabolic dysfunction.

Save Your Money Cut the Cleaning Help

Sweeping, mopping, dishes, bathrooms, trash – and nonstop laundry. Cleaning is an essential but never-ending chore. As soon as all the tasks are done, the cycle begins again. Couples often begin married life doing the cleaning by themselves – and many continue to do so – but under the pressures of jobs and children, there comes a time when cleaning help seems necessary.

But before hiring help or adding more cleaning help hours, it’s worth asking: Is your help really cleaning, or is she spending most of the time tidying piles, picking up toys, and moving clutter from room to room?

If the answer to the latter is yes, you may be paying for organizing, not actual cleaning. The reason a home looks “always messy” often has less to do with dirt and more to do with too much stuff. Once clutter is out of the way and the home has a bit of structure, cleaning takes less time. And the cost of help can go down as well.