JOURNALIST WRITES AUTOBIOGRAPHY — Our own Jerusalem-based Israel correspondent Sybil Kaplan has written an autobiography of the exciting time in her life and the life of Israel of the 1970s, titled “Witness to History: Ten Years as a Woman Foreign Correspondent in Israel.” She was one of the few women foreign correspondents of the time and a new immigrant in Israel. Kaplan was the first woman journalist to gain permanent press credentials for a Jewish paper from the Israel Government Press Office. The book’s epilogue chronicles her six visits back to Israel from 2001 on, as well as her daughter coming to live in Israel. From time to time she still writes for The Chronicle.
She plans to self-publish the book and is currently taking orders. In addition to the new book, she is selling a reprint of her 1970s cookbook, “The Wonders of a Wonder Pot, Cooking in Israel Without an Oven.” {mprestriction ids="1,3"}In Israel this year, many people used wonder pots instead of koshering their ovens. For more information about either book, contact her at
2015 NFL SEASON BEGINS ON ROSH HASHANAH
By Gabe Friedman, (JTA) — On Rosh Hashanah, according to the liturgy, our fate is written in the Book of Life.
But Jewish football fans may be spending the holiday thinking about something else: the NFL opening games they are missing.
The 2015 NFL schedule was released last week and the season kickoff is on Sept. 13, which is the first night of Rosh Hashanah.
The first game of the season, as it has been in recent years, is on a Thursday (Sept. 10). But the following Sunday (Erev Rosh Hashanah, Sept. 13) kicks off the season for most of the league’s teams — all but six to be exact. New York area fans will be most disappointed as they prepare to go to synagogue — the Giants play on Sunday night at 8:30.
There are also two Monday night games that coincide with the first full day of Rosh Hashanah. The Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons, Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers all play on Monday.
The Chiefs do not play on Rosh Hashanah or Yom Kippur. They do have a Monday night game on Sept. 28 at Green Bay, during the holy days of Sukkot.
CELEBRATE LAG B’OMER AT GEZER PARK — Bring your best home-made hummus — or just your appetite — to the first ever hummus cook-off in celebration of Lag b’Omer. Join the communitywide gathering beginning at 5 p.m. Thursday, May 7, in Gezer Park (133rd Street & Mission Road). Vaad supervised kosher hot dogs and s’mores will also be available for purchase. For more information, contact Yahav Barnea, Israel emissary at the Jewish Federation of Greater Kansas City, at .
SHOOTER CLAIMS HE’LL PLEAD GUILTY — Many media outlets reported on Monday that the white supremacist who is accused of killing three people at two Jewish sites a year ago plans to plead guilty to avoid waiting for trial. He reportedly called the Associated Press and said he is in failing health and wants his chance to speak in court. Frazier Glenn Cross, Jr., also known as Frazier Glenn Miller, has been scheduled to appear in court next on May 14 for pretrial motions. As The Chronicle went to press Tuesday, there was no word that a new court date has been set.
ISRAEL RANKS AS 11TH-HAPPIEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD (JNS.org) — Israel was ranked the 11th-happiest country in the world in 2014, according to the annual World Happiness Report, released last week.
Among 158 countries surveyed, Israel beat out several Western countries such as the United States (15), Ireland (18), United Kingdom (21), Germany (26), and France (29). Switzerland, Iceland, Denmark, Norway, and Canada were the top five countries.
The happiness scale was compiled using several factors, including GDP per capita, life expectancy, freedom of choice, generosity, perceptions of corruption, and social support. The report is published by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, an initiative of the United Nations launched in 2012 that promotes sustainable development on local, national and global scales.
Not surprisingly, most of Israel’s neighbors fared poorly in the rankings, including the Palestinian territories (108), Egypt (135), Jordan (85), and Lebanon (103).{/mprestriction}