Magic Jewball

A lot going on in House of Becca, but in the meantime, in case you’re having a slow news day, here’s an exciting article from the London Daily Telegraph.

Duke of York and his travelling ironing board

The ironing board with the HRH label was spotted by baggage handlers in the hold of the plane taking the Duke to Vietnam from Heathrow’s Terminal 5 on Friday.

There’s more, but you get the idea. Yes, this entire article can be summarized by saying, “Prince Andrew’s staff carry an ironing board with them when he travels. To iron his clothes on. Because he wears a lot of suits and needs to look neat.”

My God, who knew? Tomorrow in the Telegraph, Prince William travels with comb.

The sticky is so this post stays on top for a while. The new year is the Jewish new year, and if you’re getting your holiday on, you know you want baked goods. And look! We have a fun new logo for my now traditional “bake sale for charity.” This season, the charity in question is the Susan G. Komen Race For the Cure, which raises money to help find a cure for breast cancer and help poor women afford healthcare. For a happy blog, I’ve mentioned too many times that this is an issue that effects me deeply and has changed my life forever.

This time, I’m doing the race in Denver. Because I like mountains and I like my friends. Who are also going to Denver. Sadly, due to health and personal issues, I haven’t been able to train and so I may end up walking. But they still give your money to cure cancer, don’t worry. And my team is called Team Fabulous!, so I’m sure it will be fabulous either way, with an exclamation point, even.

I’m not saying my cookies will save the world, but they will save your day. Because rugelach are just that good. If you have never tasted rugelach, or mine in particular, they are rolled, pastry cookies that are made with butter, fruity filling, chocolate, cinnamon, and a healthy dose of awesome. I make them in raspberry/chocolate, but for your convenience, apricot/chocolate is also on offer. No nuts are involved.

(at right, raspberry rugelach in action)

So! Here is how to donate and get rugelach:

1. Donate at least $15 to my Komen/Race For the Cure fund. It is tax deductible.

Becca races for the Cure in Denver.

2. Pay $5 shipping (no credit cards please or PayPal takes out a large slice). This is not tax deductible.

3. Fill out this form.

cforms contact form by delicious:days

And that’s it!

Here are some facts you may like to know:

• It’s a medium-sized (4 cup) Gladware container.
• Last day to order is Saturday 9/20.
• Shipping will depend on the timing of your order but will be before the end of September. I’ll let you know when yours ships. It will be via USPS priority mail.

Most importantly, THANK YOU! And a sweet new year.

PS, this is my 500th post. How well did that work out?

As I said, I’ve had this song in my head for about four weeks now (well, not literally, that would have driven me crazy, but I’ve had it in my mind for this post). Sometimes when you put these kinds of things off, you realize the track just wasn’t as good as you remembered. But no, this one is. It’s one of those dark, gothy numbers, the sort of early 90’s swirly guitar, low-in-the-mix vocals songs that somehow depressed you even when you had no idea what they were about. I’ve been told this is about a car but who cares, it’s long and drawn out, a journey of a song, and it’s thick-sounded and full of guitar texture.

Sing it with me! “It’s the color of your skin… your skin is black metallic……”

Napster:
Catherine Wheel – Black Metallic

Streaming audio available on the iPod Song of the Week page.

Welcome late night tennis fans. In regards to the “is Mardy Fish Jewish” question that brought you here, the answer is at the end of this post.

Go Fish!

Well, it’s been a brilliant staycation (finally! There’s a name for something I’ve been doing for years and years) but before I go back to selling you obsolete plastic discs, here are some things I will miss from the US Open, the greatest week of my year (yes, I know it’s two weeks – the week I watch on TV isn’t quite as fun, surprisingly).

Armstrong stadium from the top. Looking down at everything, close to the Ben & Jerry’s cart.

This was the first match of the day, it was a little empty. Which is good; I need a few empty seats around when I apply sunscreen.

I actually sit a bit closer (you can sit almost anywhere – so populist) but I wanted a cone picture.

The kids waiting to get their giant balls signed. You heard me.

This is how you know someone is about to lose; the kids swarm from all over the stadium – they always seem to know first, the vultures.

The running of the ball kids. What form!

The brave guy who hand installs the winners on the giant draw.

Of course, it’s brave to be that high up doing that, but what I really mean is exposing your ass to the world in this flattering harness (click picture for close-up).

So! Just to update you, Nalby was eliminated in a performance unique for its daring display of not really caring at all whether one wins or loses. However, he was beaten by “the man who must succeed,” Gael Monfils, so that turned out not so terrible. Even more fantastically, Monfils was beaten by Our Other Man, Mardy Fish. Go Fish! Next up for Mardy is Rafael Nadal. Since even our MINDS can’t help him now, I’m just going to relax and stick pepper under my nails so I can’t bite them.

This is all to explain the other magical thing about watching the Open from start to finish. It’s a linear story where the winners of the two matches you saw the day before yesterday play today and the winner of that match plays someone else you saw in a thrilling victory. And all the way, you know how they got there and how they did it, and hopefully, you were part of the story.

Until next year!

The Sound of Music Soundtrack – So Long, Farewell