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ian_gunn
I didn't exactly seek it out; it followed me down an alley and mugged me. :-) I wrote this in 1999, and I should augment it at some point.
2. I liked the time machine question Liam asked so, with no chance of death
or injury what five events/people/things in history would you go back to
witness?
I don't remember the parameters of the original question; I'm assuming I can witness events and perhaps even interact in minor ways, but that there is no changing of history going on here.
(Um, I get a universal translator, right? :-) )
1. The revelation at Mount Sinai. You probably predicted that. :-) Jewish tradition holds that all Jews who ever would be were there in some mystical sense, but I wouldn't turn down a chance to be present a little more directly.
2. Congress during the articulation of the bill of rights. I'd like to know what they really meant on some points, and I think the perspective of law-makers correcting laws made within their recent memory would be fascinating. We know a lot about the discussions leading to the constitution; I want to hear round 2.
3. Some multi-day visit when my paternal grandfather was still alive. I remember him as a very nifty person but he died when I was quite young. I'd like to have gotten to know him better. (He lived just far enough away that, except in the summer, visits tended to involve an overnight stay.)
4. The Jewish section of Cordova circa 950. I'm still a SCAdian, after all -- primary persona research is a must!
5. Can I go to the moon with one of the Apollo crews, or is that outside the scope of the question?
3. What music projects do you have going on this coming year?
Let's see. On the Mark has been on hiatus, and we're going to get together soon to talk about re-starting and, assuming that, what new material we want to look at. A few weeks ago I finished arranging a piece of Jewish music for choir, and if the composer of the original song doesn't hate it I hope to make this the first of several pieces I feed to my congregation's choir. I hope to be able to fill in as cantorial soloist once or twice when ours is sick or on vacation; I think I've succeeded in showing her that I have Competence and also Clue. No recording projects are imminent. Someday I'd like to get set up with PC-based recording that would allow me to do at least draft/scratch recordings, but that's a long way off because I don't know the domain at all. Really don't know -- I don't even own a microphone.
4. If you could have your Pennsic house made all over again, what changes
would you make to it (or have Johan make to it)?
You know that lattice railing at the front of the loft? I'd find a way to make that hinged, so that I could drop it while shoving large stuff up into the loft from the floor below. I would make the latticed windows easily removable; this is really about emergency egress but it could also come in handy for painting. I'd do the shutters right (and I may yet replace them); they were an on-site hack when I realized that the original plan wouldn't work. I would go ahead and install some of the textured ceiling tiles with the right kinds of patterns on the walls; my original plan was to gradually add real wood-carving, but that ain't happenin'. I would also consider alternate flooring -- marble or tile. I would do something about that doorknob.
Structurally, I would investigate the trailer on which it's all built more. Would heavier-duty tires help? Does it have sufficient load for the stuff we're storing in it (and the weight of the house itself)? We're getting by, but we might have been able to do better.
But really, I would change very little. Johan did a very clever design (the back wall is brilliant and the air-conditioning is serendipitious), and I'm really happy with the house.
5. You have just witnessed the murder of a loved one. You are safe and there
is no danger to your life. You have the power to immediately kill the
murderer or let them get away and potentially never be caught. What do
you do?
Wow. Are those really my only choices? Because I think what I'm most likely to do is to try my best to stop the guy -- restraining or wounding seriously enough that he's not going anywhere until the police arrive. And I would not hesitate to do that.
Certainly there is some level of "you killed my $LOVED_ONE; prepare to die". But if I have my wits about me at all, I have to recognize that this is a violation of both divine law and criminal law. So I don't think I'd kill the murderer, though I'd probably spend a lot of time kicking myself for that ultimately-correct decision.
I do believe in the death penalty in appropriate cases -- but I also believe in judicial process.
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Things like winning over the Conservitive Jewish woman at the university by eating my Mc Donalds by sitting on the floor outside the Kosher Dining Hall while everyone else was inside.
Or getting frustrated while building the Sukka(sp). Only the non Jews could figure out how to put it together. Several of the Jewish folks had to get all the other Jews inside so the rest of us could put the Sukka(sp) together. We were nice and left them instructions for the next year.
Thanks for sharing your coming to Judaism story. It really did hit home. I am going through some strange religious times right now. Your essay made me feel not so alone. Thank you.
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You're welcome. Hey, if there's anything I can do to help, just say so. I was enormously lucky to have friends I could lean on when I was going through this!