daf bit: Yevamot 47

The g'mara on today's daf talks about how we respond to somebody who wants to convert. First we ask "do you not know that Jews are persecuted and despised?", and if he wants to join anyway we teach him some of the minor and major commandments (including specifically gleanings, leaving the corners of the field, the dropped sheaf, and the poor man's tithe), penalties for violating them, and the reward of the world to come. We do not try to either persuade or dissuade. If he agrees, he is immediately circumcised and, when he has recovered, he ritually immerses while two men teach him more laws, and when he comes out he's a Jew.

The g'mara recounts a telling of the conversation between Naomi and Ruth (in the book of Ruth), when Ruth refused to return to Moav, to illustrate this teaching of commandments:

Naomi: We are forbidden to move on Shabbat beyond the Shabbat boundary!

Ruth: Whither thou goest I will go.

We are forbidden private meetings between man and woman!"

Where thou lodgest I will lodge.

We have been commanded 613 commandments!

Thy people shall be my people.

We are forbidden idolatry!

And thy god shall be my god.

Four modes of execution were entrusted to the beit din (court)!

Where thou diest I will die.

Two graveyards were placed at the disposal of the beit din!

And there I will be buried.

And Naomi saw that Ruth would not be deterred. (47b)

(The process today is a little more demanding, by the way. We expect converts to learn more than just a few of their new obligations, and demonstrate that knowledge and commitment by living it, before completing the process.)

the Internet helpdesk delivers

Tonight I popped a DVD into my Mac Mini (Trope Trainer, because I needed to print something from it) and the machine declined to read it. On several tries with multiple discs I got either "can't read this; wanna eject?" or "hey, you gave me a blank disc" (um, no). Dani's iMac could read the original DVD just fine. Rebooting didn't change anything. So, off to the Internet for guidance.

I don't have a can of compressed air at home and advice was mixed about CD cleaning kits. One answer sounded unlikely, but it also seemed harmless so I gave it a shot.

And that is how I successfully cleaned my DVD drive with a microfiber cloth and a credit card. I should still get myself a can of air, though, because I probably only moved some dust particles around (and off the optic scanner). Nothing came out on the cloth, so whatever the problem was, it's still in there -- just, apparently, brushed aside.