By Emily Rosen

ERosen424@aol.com

www.emilyrosen424.com

You all must know those “parlor games” people play, as in “Ok, let’s go around the room, everyone, and tell us ‘Who would you like to BE in your next life?’ … or ‘What was the scariest time of your life?’ … or ‘Tell us about your first kiss.’

Well, when they came to ‘What was the dumbest thing you ever did?’ I was hit with a sudden case of déjà vous and I realized that I’d never told anyone this story before.

It was 1992. I was leading two lives and they were definitely fighting each other. On the one hand, I was the perfect housewife, hovering mother of two grown sons, creator of dazzling parties for the right people, country club robot – golf, tennis, luncheons the right clothes.

On the other hand, I was an empty nester, looking for something more meaningful to me. Women of my generation were not scrambling to go back to work, especially if their husbands’ income was sufficient for their preferred lifestyle. Such an act might suggest a need to supplement that income and “how would that look?” Subtle, but I “got” it.

So I went half way and took a job freelancing for a local newspaper in Westchester County where I lived. And that was kind of fun. It didn’t interfere with my “other” life. I could go on most assignments on my own time and never missed a deadline.

I had always been somewhat of a political junkie, and if you don’t remember 1992, allow me to massage your memory. It was just another political year with the usual cast of many characters vying for the big job: Jerry Brown, Bob Kerry, Bill Clinton, Eugene McCarthy, Paul Tsongas and a couple of other folks long forgotten, but at the time, people who actually thought they could be leaders of the world. And Westchester County, commuter distance from New York City, was pocketed with big money folks who were always anxious to give bucks for a touch of fame – if not something even more substantial than that.

Candidates and their surrogates … wives, mothers, sisters, etc. were on the trail speaking for their “man” at wealthy homes all over the county raising campaign money. And at various times, my editor would ask me to interview some of those very dull people, which I reluctantly did, happy only to see my byline – anywhere!

On this particular day, I was scheduled to play in a tennis tournament when my editor called. I sighed and made a face, invisible of course, across telephone lines. “Who is it THIS time?” I asked.

Her voice barely came through as I heard her mumble an unfamiliar name. “Listen, Sandy,” I said. “No one ever even heard of her. It’s really a waste of time and, besides, I’m on my way to play in a tennis tournament. Sorry.”

Sandy was uncanny in her ability to smell a story, and she was usually very tenacious. But this time, she capitulated. “Yeah,” she said. “I guess you’re right … another nobody. Good luck in your tournament.”

And that’s how I never got to interview the person “no one ever heard of” … Hillary Clinton.

Our children and grandchildren, who have probably been a little more rambunctious than usual, are busting out of school and into summer vacation.

Let me take a moment to applaud all teachers as you have dedicated yourselves to an amazingly holy task. I hope and pray that you enjoy your summer vacations, as I can’t think of anyone who deserves such a break more than you.

I hope that even though the kids are out of school that they will not miss out on some important birthdays that occur in the merry month of June.

For instance, for those of you who grew up on Sesame Street, Oscar the Grouch will be celebrating his birthday this month.

June is also the month in which that most famous of fable writers, Aesop, was born. And I have no doubt that summer will be all it’s “quacked” up to be because it was back in June of 1934 that Donald Duck was born. And, June should be a super month because Superman also celebrates his birthday at this time.

While I hope that the kids remembered not to sit in class texting on their cell phones, June happens to have a celebration known as “E-Mail Week.” But, I hope that we will all keep in mind that June is also National Drive Safe Month. Please, remember, don’t text and drive.

Father’s Day is in June, and, if you happen to be alive, then you have a father to thank out there. Of course, June also happens to be National Bubba Day. While the day is really meant to be a day to celebrate those who are named Bubba (like Forrest Gump’s best Friend), for those of us who know a bisseleh Yiddish, Bubba’s Day has a very different meaning. You see, a Bubba is a grandmother, and I hope you get to spend lots of quality time with your Bubba this summer.

As many of you know, becoming a grandparent gives us a great chance to spoil our little angels and June is a perfect time to show them how sweet life can be as we celebrate National Chocolate Ice Cream Day. Yummy, Yummy!

There is another reason that the month of June is big with members of The Tribe because we also celebrate Adopt a Katz Day … and I have no doubt that Mr. and Mrs. Katz would love for you to adopt them as a part of your family. Okay, it’s not really Katz Day … it’s Cat’s Day and I, for one, think that that’s just “purr-fect.”

There is one more day I would like to bring to your attention. June happens to have National Columnist Day. I am not mentioning this to toot my own horn; I just wanted to thank all of the teachers I have been blessed with because, without them, I would not be able to write a single word, let alone a regular newspaper column.

So, to the children who are reading this column and to those of you who are having it read to you, I have an assignment for you … that’s right, homework. Check and see if you can find the dates in June for each of the special days I mentioned in this article. I know you can do it, and if you can, thank a Teacher!

Shalom My Friends,

Rabbi Craig H. Ezring

Rabbi Ezring is the Spiritual Leader of Temple Beth Israel of Deerfield Beach. If you like his column in the Observer and would like to hear him speak, guests and visitors are welcome to attend Saturday morning services at 10a.m. (The Temple is on Military Trail just South of Hillsboro Blvd.)

By Gary Curreri

Deerfield Beach’s Donald Mann enjoys golf because of the challenge it presents and he doesn’t mind the scenery either. The 91-year-old Mann recently picked up his first ever hole-in-one on the Par-3,130-yard, 3rd hole at the newly renovated Greg Norman Pines course at the Pompano Municipal Golf Course.

Mann, who is a member of the Pompano Beach Men’s Golf Association, used his 28-degree, Hybrid 6 club and drove the ball within 30-35 feet of the Par-3, 130-yard, 3rd hole and watched it roll in the cup, much to the delight of his playing partners.

“It was a stroke of luck,” said Mann, a veteran of the Normandy Invasion. “I got a birdie on the next hole, so I was three under after two holes and I was thinking this game isn’t as difficult as I thought it was. Then, the wheels fell off and I started making bogeys and double bogeys.”

Mann, who takes lessons from Pompano golf pro T.J. Ziol, is originally from New Jersey and played golf as a youth, but gave it up for tennis. He took up golf again at age 70 after a 50-year hiatus. Mann said he is a 25-handicap now and has been as low as an 11. He hopes to get back there within the year.

“I’ve holed some wedges from the fairway, but this is my first hole-in-one,” Mann said. “The golf swing is a very complicated thing and I have been taking lessons. The thrill of hitting a very nice shot is a good feeling. “To some people, the professionals, they have 8, 9 or 10 holein- ones during their careers. It is a pretty small cup with a long way to go.”

Mann said he plays two to three times a week and enjoys the scenery and practicing. He also likes the commemorative plaque the PGA sent him for his feat.

“The golf swing is a very complicated thing and I have been taking lessons,” said Mann, who has shot below his age a number of times. “Now, my goal is to get into the low 80s. I have given away a lot of shots around the green because my short game needs work.”

By Dave Montalbano

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

As one would expect, Renoir is a pure art house movie, with a slow pace and gorgeous cinematography. Not quite a historical drama, the characters linger in a way that one wants to learn more about the subjects – the family Renoir. In terms of the summer Blockbuster season, Renoir is the quiet vacation for people who want to get away from it all.

This movie would have been more accurately titled Renoirs, for it is a generational story about a father and his son. Painter Pierre- Auguste Renoir (Michel Bouquet) is a crippled father who has yet to create his final masterpiece (The Bathers) with a paint brush, oils and optimal sunlight. A wounded warrior, Jean Renoir (Vincent Rottiers) limps through his father’s garden and talks about new things, like airplanes and moving pictures. Andrée Heuschling (Christa Theret) is the object of both men’s eyes. She is the muse who poses nude for Papa Renoir.

In spite of the impressionistic motifs, performances are good. The beauty is as real as a primavera Sunday afternoon, but so is the pain of a man struggling in pain with inflamed and gnarly hands. As the senior Renoir says, “The pain passes, beauty remains.”

Frances Ha opens next week in The Living Room Theater in Boca Raton. The title character (Greta Gerwig) shares similar characteristics as Andrée Heuschling, a struggling artist who seeks to develop as performance. Unlike Renoir, Frances Ha is filmed in black & white and contains no nudity.

As a dancer for a Manhattan Dance Company, Frances has enjoyed the Bohemian lifestyle. Now in her late twenties, Frances is forced to mature as her friends form families and her dance skills diminish.

With the black-and-white cinematography and Manhattan setting, Frances Ha is influenced by Woody Allen. Yet Frances is not another pseudo intellectual Catskills comedian, she is an endearing character who learns to embrace her California roots and artistic desires.

In two weeks, Fatality Fest opens in West Palm Beach. For the first time in 10 years, a horror movie convention opens south of Orlando. Expected to attend will be Dee Wallace (E.T., Cujo, Ten); Camille Keaton, Buster’s granddaughter; Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters, JAG, OZ) and the queen of independent filmmaking Debbie Rochon. For ticket information, visit – http://www.fatalityfest.com/ west-palm-beach.html

As Floridians, you and I are well aware of the damage that can be caused by a powerful storm. With hurricane season approaching our own shores, we’ve watched with empathy as the people of Oklahoma have faced the destruction and aftermath of last week’s tornados. Unfortunately, devastating storms are an unavoidable part of life in certain areas of the country. As long as we live in their path, we run the risk of coming face-to-face with the havoc they wreak.

Still, while natural storms like hurricanes and tornados aren’t easy to weather, they often pale in comparison to the other types of storms we face throughout our lives – the difficult situations and unexpected circumstances that whip in and leave us shattered.

Marriage problems, illnesses, financial crises and the death of loved ones are just a few of the storms we’ll all have to deal with at some point. Communities can be rebuilt and buildings restored, but these personal storms have the potential to damage us in unseen, irreparable ways.

As a pastor, I’ve had the opportunity to work with thousands of people facing the hurt, loss and confusion that are often the result of life’s storms. When listening to what they’re going through, and when facing difficulties in my own life, I’m always reminded of a principle I learned while riding out a literal hurricane years ago: You and I can survive the storms of life if we have the right foundation. Storms will come, but we can be unshakable in their midst.

When the storms of life hit, the first and most important thing you can do is make sure you are building your life on a solid foundation. Whether you realize it or not, you are building your life on some sort of foundation – one that reflects whatever it is you have faith in. And you do have faith in something. We all do; we all have a set of beliefs through which we filter the world. Over time, those beliefs become our bedrock.

What do you have faith in? Yourself? Your spouse? Your business partners? A religious tradition? Karma? The universe? If your faith is built on the right foundation, you’ll be able to stand strong through life’s most intense disasters. But if you put your faith in the wrong place, you will struggle when difficult circumstances come and, all too often, collapse completely when the strongest storms start raging.

The only foundation capable of withstanding life’s storms is a foundation of faith in God and his son, Jesus Christ. In the scriptures, Jesus himself says: I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me, (John 14:5-7). Later, he asks his disciples: Who do you say that I am (Mark 8: 29). Eventually, we all have to answer the same question; we all have to make a decision about who we believe Jesus is. Who do you say he is?

When you make faith in Jesus your foundation, God will give you what you need to face everything this life throws your way. When things go wrong, you won’t be anxious; you’ll let yourself rely on God’s strength.

You’ll have the confidence to move forward, knowing that he is protecting you and that he has a plan for your future. From this solid foundation of faith, you’ll be able to weather every storm, making it to the other side of each one stronger for having taken the journey.

Nelson Searcy is the lead pastor of The Journey Church in Boca Raton.

You’re invited to attend The Journey this Sunday, June 2 for the kick-off of the new GOD ON FILM teaching series — where you will discover the meaning behind the biggest summer blockbuster movies. Every firsttime guest will receive a FREE Cinemark movie ticket.

The Journey meets Sundays at 10:30 a.m. at Boca Raton Community High School (Glades Rd. and I-95, exit 45, beside Whole Foods).

Learn more at: www.Boca Journey.com

By Gary Curreri

Adrienne Cerra spent the entire weekend walking around the 5th annual IFBTUSA Beach Tennis World Cup event with a smile on her face.

Cerra, the International Federation of Beach Tennis- USA president, said more than 180 players from South Florida and around the world attended the event, sponsored by Frank Congemi this past weekend at Deerfield Beach.

“It was a great success,” Cerra said. “Deerfield was once again a great host with its seaside charm and great local restaurants and bars. The players love returning every year for this great event. The beach was filled for the event as thousands watched the action, and the weather was perfect!”

Cerra said players from all over the USA, as well as Brazil, Italy, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Aruba, Peru, Columbia and Germany, represented their countries. The categories included Men’s and Women’s Open Doubles, Men’s and Women’s Open Singles, Women’s and Men’s “A” (advanced) Singles, Women’s and Men’s “A” Doubles and Mixed Doubles. Singles matches were held on Friday, Doubles on Saturday and Mixed Doubles on Sunday.

“It has almost doubled every year, and we raised the prize money to $5,000 this year thanks to the generosity of our sponsor, Frank Congemi. “Approximately $3,000 of it goes to the men’s open winner. Last year, the prize money was $1,500. This tournament is fantastic and it is one of the best tournaments in the world.”

Grade 1 World Ranking Points and prize money were awarded to the Men’s and Women’s Open Division and Mixed Doubles Winners, while prizes were awarded to A Divisions and juniors.

“We came up to see this,” said Ric Green, who has been the president and CEO of the Pompano Beach Chamber of Commerce for the past five years. “We would like to see them expand and maybe have a complimentary tournament in Pompano. With what she has going, I think there is real potential on the local level. This is an international tournament for her so this is special. Maybe we can hold a couple of local events in Pompano. It is very impressive.”

“It is always great to play for the home crowd,” said Jan Macko, who was one of 180 players who took part in the event. “It is a great weekend activity for anybody.” www.mybeachtennis.net for results!

By Dave Montalbano

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

With 10 motion pictures, four versions of Next Generation television shows and endless novels, the Star Trek franchise was collapsing under its own weight until Paramount executives hired J.J. Abrams to “reboot” the series. Abrams remained true to the Star Trek core audience, while inviting a new audience not familiar with the difference between a Klingon and a Gorn.

For his second and last Star Trek motion picture, Abrams has provided another adrenalin-filled motion picture with heart and tiny references to the 50-year-old franchise. With the best Star Trek movie, The Wrath of Khan, used as a narrative blueprint, Star Trek Into Darkness fulfills expectations of popcorn-eating Saturday Matinee fun.

This film finds the Enterprise crew in a perilous mission on a primitive planet. While Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) saves the world, he is demoted for disobeying orders. With his untrustworthy first officer Spock (Zachary Quinto) reassigned, Kirk becomes first mate to his mentor, Captain Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood). Before Pike and Kirk can begin their next mission, Star Fleet Headquarters is attacked by Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch), a one-man weapon of mass destruction.

From this point forward, this film turns into an action-packed sci-fi narrative with character twists and turns. The joy of this film is how the screenwriters take sacred Star Trek beliefs (i.e. “The Prime Directive”) and reveal what a bureaucratic cage these regulations are in the real world. This storytelling freedom is infectious.

The film will be playing on the Ft. Lauderdale Museum of Discovery (MODS) fivestorey IMAX screen until mid June, when Man of Steel is scheduled. It’s worth the extra couple of bucks. I felt I was aboard the Star Trek Enterprise and could give navigational tips to Lieutenant Sulu (John Cho).Besides the excellent documentary Flight of the Butterflies, MODS will kick off the summer with a new exhibit — Tony Hawk RAD Science, which relates “physics” with “skateboarding.” This kinesthetic learning experience concludes Labor Day Weekend.

Last, but not least, Gary Sinise and Joe Mantenga return to the National Memorial Day Concert on PBS Sunday, May 26 from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Given the recent loss of my World War II generation father, the tribute to The Greatest Generation will be especially poignant for me. Memorialize our vets … and honor them this Memorial Day weekend by enjoying freedom and having a good time.

Do you need a prescription for a wisdom-filled today? Do you sometimes make unwise decisions even about simple things? Perhaps you are at a major crossroads in your life and you want to be sure to get it right. Welcome to the human condition! The Good News is the pharmacy is open this weekend at Steeple on the Beach.

The bad news is there is no drive-up window, no quick fix and no pill for you to take that will make you wise, but I do pray you realize there are more than a few biblical principles to bring you wisdom’s way …

This is a time of year for graduations and welldeserved celebrations. It is a great time for the graduates, and for the rest of us, to reflect and respond to our pressing need for wisdom, how we might best achieve it, how we might best hold onto it should God grant that we receive it.

We have to embrace the need.

The human condition is short-lived and, however much we learn, there is always so much more.

“Teach us to realize the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)

We have to want it and work for it.

Wisdom does not come easy. Seeing the need and wishing for it is not enough. Thank God for the graduate who walks through commencement exercises still thirsting for wisdom.

“Seek wisdom like silver and search for it as for hidden treasure.” (Proverbs 2:4) “Prize her highly and she will exalt you; she will honor you for your embrace.” (Proverbs 4:8)

We have to pray for it.

Wisdom is a supernatural gift from God. It is not something we achieve on our own.

Dennis Andrews Ed. D. Reverend Andrews is Minister at Community Presbyterian Church of Deerfield Beach (Steeple on the Beach) located five blocks south of Hillsboro on A1A. See more at www.communitych.org or on Facebook.

By Dave Montalbano

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

With the release of his autobiography The Outsider: A Memoir, champion Jimmy Connors has pinched a controversial nerve that has rocked a local tennis icon and philanthropist.

Growing up in South Florida during the 1970s, one witnessed the tennis boom first hand as Chris Evert, Harold Solomon, Billie Jean King and Bjorn Borg seemed to be on television every weekend.

Held the first weekend after the Super Bowl, the Pepsi Cola Grand Slam tournament in Boca West featured the champions of Australia, Wimbledon, the U.S. and French Open.

Without the same fanfare, in four days, professional tennis will kick off it’s summer season with the French Open at Roland Garros. The only modern players who seem to capture halycon days of the 1970s are the sisters from West Palm Beach, Venus and Serena Williams.

The documentary Venus and Serena opens tomorrow. It is a fascinating film because the subject matter does not deal with a winning year, but the disappointing 2011 season for the two sisters.

With permission from the Williams family, directors Maiken Baird and Michelle Major presents Serena’s over-reaction to an Asian linesman at the U.S. Open. We witness Venus learning that she has an autoimmune disease. Showcasing professional vagabonds, Venus and Serena removes the glamour of tennis and reveals the professional drudgery of moving from hotel room to hotel room.

As the sisters confront the twilight of their tennis careers, the family unit becomes stronger. Like their parents, Venus and Serena were humbled by their adversity. This documentary is presented with such candor that one’s perspective of the pair will change after viewing it.

For tonight only, Cinema Paradiso presents ROCK SHOW: Paul McCartney and Wings, a concert documentary about Sir Paul’s tour of America, circa 1976. This special screening will be hosted by 102.7 WMXJ’s Joe Johnson, producer of The Beatles Brunch. On Saturday night at 8 p.m, they will also present Across the Universe: The Ultimate Beatles Tribute Band. For ticket information for both events, call 954-525-FILM.

The Ten Commandments are referred to by many Sages as The Ten Utterances. The Ten Commandments were carved in stone, but, before they were written, The Children of Israel stood at the foot of Mount Sinai and heard those utterances. Some say we heard the words as though they all came at once. Others say that we each heard the utterances one word at a time, and still others say that each of us heard the utterances in our own way, to the best of our understanding. I adhere to this particular theory. I believe we hear most everything through a filter; not just the filter of our ears, but through the filter of our knowledge, our experience and our culture.

Perhaps that is why, each time we re-hear a chapter in the Torah chanted, we can glean something new out of it. The Torah hasn’t changed at all. It has the same words it has always had. But, hopefully, we have changed. We have grown, and, with that growth, we hear the words in a whole new and exciting way.

Words of Torah are, indeed, words we should listen to. But there are other words … mean words, nasty words, gossip that we should try to avoid letting into our ears.

In ancient days, it was suggested that we have a flap on our ears for just that reason. Of course, it has also been said that G-d gave us long fingers so that we could stick them in our ears for the very same reason. And, that G-d gave us feet so that we could walk away from evil speech. Wow, three ways to avoid having to listen to something sinful.

Austin O’Malley said, “We should thank G-d that He did not give us the power of hearing through walls, or we would have no friends.”

And there is even an expression that sums up the Ten Utterances well … you will all recognize the words, “Hear no evil, see no evil and speak no evil.”

The ancients asked the question, “Why did G-d give us two ears but only one mouth,”and the answer was that so we should listen at least twice as much as we speak.

But poet Ralph Waldo Emerson reminds us that “The hearing ear is always found close to the speaking tongue.” Of course, we know that if we listen to Loshen Hora there is a good chance that we are going to repeat it; after all, as human beings, we seem to get some great joy in being able to say something bad about someone, as long as that someone is not us.”

But, when we listen to The Ten Utterances, we are supposed to hear with more than just our ears … we are also supposed to listen with our eyes, our nose, our hands and, yes, our heart and our soul. This caused Groucho Marx to state, “One of the best hearing aides a man can have is an attentive wife.” I like that expression, especially as many have likened the event at Sinai to a marriage between G-d and The Children of Israel. If you are married, you had better take time to listen to your spouse when they need to talk. But, it is also true that if you really love someone, you have the ability to hear their unspoken needs. You can read the person you love like we read the Torah. You can hear the changes in inflection. You notice the little nuances. You listen, really listen, with every fiber of your being.

Shalom my friends,

Rabbi Craig H. Ezring

Rabbi Ezring is a member of the National Association of Jewish Chaplains and of the Association of Professional Chaplains. He works professionally in this capacity with a number of healthcare facilities in the area and with hospice. He is the Spiritual Leader of Temple Beth Israel of Deerfield Beach.