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Sunday, December 11, 2005

Flotsam and Jetsam

I don't want to overwhelm anyone on this sleepy Sunday (even those for whom it is the start of the work week), so here are a few benign odds and ends that have been on my list but which really don't warrant their own post:

1.  I may have mentioned this in previous posts, but I am still completely charmed by the way Israelis refer to the @ symbol when saying their email addresses aloud.  For example, instead of employing the common English practice of saying treppenwitz 'at' gmail dot com... Israelis instead would say treppenwitz 'strudel' gmail dot com.  True, the @ symbol was originally meant to convey the mathematical concept of a quantity of something 'at' a given price... but the symbol looks so much like the cross section of a sliced piece of strudel that I can't believe others haven't adopted it!

Perhaps if you're feeling a bit subversive you can try slipping in the word 'strudel' the next time you give out your email address.  I'm not saying it will catch on, but it should be good for a smile.

2.  A thoughtful reader (Daniel Skibinski) emailed a couple of logos related to current events.  The first is in response to the call by the President of Iran for Israel to be wiped off the map:

Onthemap120

I would be interested to see if someone can come up with a logo dealing with his subsequent statement that since Germany and Austria are responsible for creating the 'Zionist problem' with the Holocaust... they should provide a solution by creating a Jewish state somewhere along the Danube.   I just hope nobody mentions this to some of the Israeli political establishment because they may just go for it!

The second logo he sent along relates to the International Red 'crystal' issue I mentioned on Thursday.  His depiction of the logos arrayed next to one another makes it clear that the intention is to minimize or even eliminate the Jewish aspect of our 'offensive'  medical symbol.

Mda

The truth is that these logos won't make a bit of difference in the perception of these issues by those with anti-Israel agendas... but one can't completely discount the 'feel good' value of preaching to the choir.

[feel free to lift, display and/or distribute either logo]

3.  I have been sitting on a bunch of pictures of Yonah for the past couple of weeks and am coming under fire from my wife and family for not posting them.  I plead overwork and forgetfulness to all parties.  So now they are up and you can go over to the 'All Yonah all the time' album and check him out (Val).  By the way... we gave him a nice haircut last night so he looks nothing like the pictures any more!  :-P

4.  Lastly (at least for now), Dave of IsraellyCool, in cooperation with the Jerusalem Post, will be starting the nomination process this week for the JIB (Jewish & Israeli Blog) Awards over on his site this week.  Once nominations are closed the final voting will take place on the Jerusalem Post site.  I will be posting my list of recommendations (along with reasons why they deserve your vote), later in the week.

By the way... anyone curious about my choice of title today can go here where it clearly states that in addition to the maritime usage, flotsam and jetsam have also "developed equivalent broad senses, meaning  'useless or unimportant items; odds and ends'".

I'd say that's pretty apt, no?

221_16_5_103

Posted by David Bogner on December 11, 2005 | Permalink

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My impression was that the crystal is the international symbol and then each organization can insert their religious symbol into the crystal if they want. I may be wrong, but this is what my impression was.

Posted by: Seth | Dec 11, 2005 11:09:29 AM

maybe a map from the original 1923 treaty with all of it labeled israel

Posted by: david | Dec 11, 2005 2:07:06 PM

Seth... I would be delighted if you could provide some verification of that theory. As I understand it, bearers of all three symbols are free to use the crystal, but only Israel is obliged to do so (since the Red Star of David remains an unauthorized symbol by itself). I'm not being sarcastic... I really would be delighted to be proved wrong here.

David... I guess if you're going to dream you may as well dream big! :-)

Posted by: David | Dec 11, 2005 2:38:18 PM

Loved the 'danish' reference... I may try and use that going forward.

Thanks so much for the Yonah pics... it was a great way to start my day - seeing that cute face of his... truly amazing how much he resembles both of his siblings and I could hear him saying "NO" very clearly! (was also glad to see that the referenced 'dog' was NOT Jordan! - though a recent pic of her and the 'big kids' woulda been nice, too!)

Posted by: val | Dec 11, 2005 3:54:44 PM

I will be posting my list of recommendations (along with reasons why they deserve your vote), later in the week.

Vote for the Shmata Queen because she loves the attention. ;)

Sorry Stace.

Posted by: Jack | Dec 11, 2005 7:02:32 PM

David, in Hebrew it's a "strudel," but in French and Italian I think it's a "small snail" or some such thing. I prefer strudel. :)

Still hot under the collar about the Red Not-a-Star-of-David-Crystal thingie, and I love Daniel's image, but it's missing the universal red symbol for NO.

(BTW-who is that unbelievably big boy maskerading as Yonah? '-) )

Posted by: jennifer | Dec 11, 2005 7:43:22 PM

Strudel it is. I'll enjoy the laugh if no one else will.

I really hope you meant "feel free to lift, display and/or distribute either logo", because I did . . . and I did. :)

I greatly enjoy your postings.

Posted by: Tim | Dec 11, 2005 9:15:02 PM

Val... 'strudel', not danish. Clearly you read this before you'd made your coffee run this morning! :-)

Jack... Since I am only making general recommendations, I have the luxury of suggesting more than one blog in each category. :-)

Jennifer... Yonah has officially entered the 'terrible twos' and definitely has ideas about how tings should be in 'his' world. :-) I think I liked him better without all the opinions. :-)

Tim... I noticed you put the 'on the map' one up already... good for you! I'd be interested to hear some of the reactions you get when you call the @ a 'strudel'. :-)

Posted by: David | Dec 11, 2005 10:10:57 PM

LOL, Strudel, I'll have to remember that one...

By the way, (I'm a bit of a dinosaur), how can I "lift" the logo? Is there some sort of code for it?

Posted by: Irina | Dec 12, 2005 5:08:41 AM

I love strudel.

Posted by: Matt | Dec 12, 2005 5:22:18 AM

Many moons ago I worked at an internet cafe/bar at the Russian Compound in Jerusalem called Strudel. It was annoying have to explain to people why we didn't have strudel on the menu.

Posted by: harry | Dec 12, 2005 10:21:23 AM

Well, in Russian is called "sobaka" - a "dog". Strange, isn't it.

Posted by: Greg T | Dec 12, 2005 5:44:16 PM

That Yonah is adorable! kenahora, pooh, pooh, pooh. thanks for sharing the pics.

Posted by: Essie | Dec 12, 2005 8:54:31 PM

Irina... If you are using a PC you simply right click on the image and 'save as...' whatever and wherever you ant to save it. If you are using a Mac you can simply drag it to a file.

Matt... Happy to help.

Harry... What a surprise that the management didn't feel the need to have it one the menu! "I know a bunch of people come in here every day asking for something, but their stupid for asking so I won't sell them any!" Gotta love Israeli marketing! :-)

Greg... I'm sure there's a story there somewhere.

Essie... Yes, but he's LOUD!

Posted by: David | Dec 12, 2005 11:49:57 PM

Thanks!

Posted by: Irina | Dec 13, 2005 4:24:52 AM

flotsam and jetsam are part of my first day of class shpiel, found in an article Garrison Keilor wrote about writing. students are directed to their dictionaries and if there isn't an entry at all (!) or a wholly inadequate one -- the message is clear: upgrade the dictionary.

Until one semester when a student said she had no idea those were real words. She'd always assumed they were made up names of some of the scavenger fish in The Little Mermaid!

Posted by: timna | Dec 14, 2005 8:14:36 AM

Ohh, so much to say, so little time, sorry if it's been repeated. The Germans say Strudel as well, in Portuguese we use a wight measurement word I need to look up but I think it conveys 25 Kg. And I will stay clear of the Red Cross thingy lest I burst a vein or two.

Posted by: Lioness | Dec 14, 2005 9:03:29 PM

Lioness... Hmmm, I'm surprised some of my German readers didn't mention about the strudel! Thanks. And yeah... the Red Crystal still has me a bit steamed.

Posted by: David | Dec 14, 2005 9:29:33 PM

I don't think I made it up but we could have Shabbat Syndrome all over again. Hope not.

Posted by: Lioness | Dec 15, 2005 12:47:56 AM

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