Cute Hanukkah Stuff at Target!... (for dogs)

Jewish Product Bloopers Part Two:
Target has cute Hanukkah stuff for dogs but not people.

On October 31, Halloween day, Target had moved the Halloween stuff to the end caps and stocked the aisles with Christmas decorations. Of course I immediately went to search for the Chanukah end cap to see how my favorite store is representing my favorite holiday.

On the way to "Stationery" (which is where Hanukkah stuff is displayed), I passed pet supplies. "Whoa! is that a Hanukkah dog sweater? And a cute silver collar with a star of David?" Absolutely. Isaac Mizrahi has included Hanukkah stuff for dogs in his winter line of doggy accoutrement. I immediately picked out a sweater and collar for my doggy then headed toward Stationery.

How's the Hanukkah stuff for people? Disappointing as usual. The end cap included: cheap, "Made in China" branch menorahs: one in "gold tone" one in "silver tone." I took one of the menorahs out of the box so I could see the quality. To say it was cheaply made is being nice: I could see the screws that attached the stems. I'm not going to go on... because it will sound nasty and I am a nice person. I just have zero tolerance for schlock!

I will let a picture say 1000 words. I plan to take a snapshot of the display to illustrate this post. Check back soon. In the mean time enjoy pics of cute Zavy in her Mizrahi attire.

Jewish Product Bloopers Part One

Some of the coolest Jewish stuff is made by "mainstream" or secular designers. And we are so thankful for them including Hanukkah stuff in their designs. (Thank you!)

However, since many of these designers not Jewish, they sometimes make mistakes.

I was tickled to open December's copy of Blueprint Magazine and find that the only Hanukkah items the magazine profiled were Bloopers. The magazine displays two beautiful Hanukkah cards both with abstract menorahs. They are beautiful, blue (of course), but count the candles:
Note: -- I sell these cards -- because they are beautiful, handmade letterpress cards. I want to support high design of Judaica and these design houses who are creating them. So, I forgive the mistake of the missing Shamas. Do you?

Cool Judaica will Fix Everything!

If you are in San Fran on Thursday, November 8th at 7:30 PM, there is a thought provoking program hosted by Progressive Jewish Alliance. Young, Jewish, and (Dis)Connected is about how, why and, more specifically, why don't younger Jews feel connected to Israel and to Jewish life in America.

You know my answer for younger Jews' disenchantment with American Jewish Life: schlocky Judaica and boring dreidel games!

We are fixing the schlocky/boring problem at ModernTribe.com. But I bet Professor Ari Kelman, Joey Kurzman from Jewcy.com, Sarah Church from PJA, Heidi Winig from American Jewish World Services, and Jeremy Lizt of New Israel Fund have some other ideas on the subject.

It's free but RSVP: bayarea@pjalliance.org or 510-527-8640