Kesslerville

anniversary party update!

2009-04-28T22:55:00.001-04:00

UPDATE!!! the nim and cranzo 30th anniversary party is on the 20th not the 27th!!!
rsvp to pippikessler@gmail.com

I'm Pregnant!

2009-01-08T18:24:00.002-05:00

Well I'm not convinced that anyone has been checking this lately, but nevertheless, I have news to share! I am pregnant, due July 26th :-D I don't know if it's a girl or boy yet, but I'll keep y'all posted.

2008-12-06T16:44:00.001-05:00

New Charlotte video

2008-10-28T20:27:00.000-04:00

Here's a new video of Charlotte. Enjoy!

Zoe and David's wedding montage

2008-10-19T23:03:00.002-04:00

I've posted the video that we showed at Zoe and David's wedding this weekend. Enjoy!

RSVP

2008-08-27T10:50:00.001-04:00

Hey all. I'm missing around 100 RSVPs mostly from the Kesslers :-x Please get back to me ASAP, if you haven't already. They were due last Friday and I need to get final headcounts in to the caterer, etc.
Love,
Zoe

Make Sure to Write Your Names on the Response Card

2008-07-14T19:53:00.002-04:00

I got my very first response card today! Very exciting, except that there was no name written on it and no return address. Make sure to write the names of those attending or not attending on the line provided pretty pretty pleeeeeeez.
Love,
Zoe

New video

2008-07-10T10:59:00.001-04:00

It's been a while since anyone posted here, but here's the latest video of Charlotte, singing some of her favorite numbers:

Happy Purim

2008-03-20T21:42:00.002-04:00

Zoe's right. It's been too long. And speaking of too long, here is the script of the Purim spiel I wrote for Temple Israel:

The Long Hamantaschen Goodbye

Chapter One: A Scandal in Shushan

Call me Shell. Shell Shlemiel. I’m a private eye. Shushan is my town. That’s right, I’m Shell Shlemiel, the Shushan Shamus. I’m also shomer shabbos, but that’s another story. The story I’m here to tell is about a dame called Queen Esther.

It all started back in Shushan. Now Shushan was the capital of the Medes and Persians. Ask me “What’s the difference between a Mede and a Persian?”

[Chorus: ]“What’s the difference between a Mede and a Persian?”]

It depends: One man’s Mede is another man’s Persian.

But I’m losing track of the story. Shushan was a tough town.

[Chorus:] “How tough was it?”

Shushan was so tough that you could go from one side of town to the other and never leave the scene of the crime. One of the toughest people in town was Queen Vashti.
[“How tough was Queen Vashti?”]
Why don’t I let her tell you herself:

[Vashti tells her story:]

“It’s not easy being Queen. You have to be tough. I’m pretty tough. When the King tells people to jump, they say, “How high.” When I tell people to jump, I say: “I never told you you could come back down.” That’s tough. I’m a tough Queen. But things got really tough the night the King decided to throw a party.
The King and his pals drank a lot.”

[Narrator and chorus:] “How much did they drink?”

[King and cronies:]
Yeah, we drink a lot. We drink to forget. We drink to forget that we drink too much.

[Optional: King and cronies sing (to tune of Adon Olam):]

We drink all day. We drink all night.
We’ll have a beer. And we’ll get tight.
Instead of one. We might have ten.
We’ll be crude and we’ll be rude
And then we’ll start again.

Unfortunately, that night was typical. The King invited Vashti to the party, but she wouldn’t come. The King, though, was a lot like a five watt light bulb
– not too bright. So instead of sobering up, he got into an argument.

The King told Vashti he was mad. He wanted her to come to the party so that he and his friends could act stupid. [Vashti enters dressed as Hillary Clinton]. Vashti tried to interest the King in her universal health care plan, but had no luck. The King couldn’t think of a snappy comeback, and exiled Vashti to the New World. Vashti said, “You can’t fire me, I quit!” and told the harem the news.
The harem told Vashti stupid King jokes: The King is so stupid that:
o He spent a week trying to put a pack of M&Ms in alphabetical order.
o He finally gave up because he found too many ‘W’s
o He couldn’t count to one…even using the fingers of both hands
o He stared at a can of juice for a whole day because it said ‘concentrate’
o He thinks he can trust Haman
o [Add your favorite “stupid” joke here.]
Vashti thanked the harem and went off to run for President.

Chapter Two: A Contest for a Queen

Now it happened that my old friend Mordecai lived in Shushan with his niece Esther. Now remember that the King was out looking for a new Queen. He put out word over all of Shushan that he wanted the finest singers in the land, male and female, to come to the capital to audition for a contest to find Shushan’s best looking and most talented pop singing idol. After he thought about it for a while, he decided to drop the men and the singing.

Morty was a pretty clever guy. When he heard about the King’s contest, he told his niece Esther to go for it. After that, it was no contest. Esther wasn’t the most beautiful Jewish dame in Shushan for nothing. And – she was a nice person. After Vashti, she looked really good to King Ahaseuerus..

Morty was not only clever, he was smart. He used to sit outside the gates of the city, because he learned a lot about what was going on and because that’s where he got the best cell phone reception. One day he overheard two guys plotting to kill the King. He passed the word to the King’s guard and he saved the King’s life, which was good. Mordecai knew the King was such a dim bulb that he would never figure out that he was in danger, so he warned the King’s guards about the bad guys. The guards arrested the bad guys and wrote down in the King’s official record that Mordecai had saved the King’s life.

Chapter Three: Haman’s Evil Plot

Now, you remember the King, King Ahaseuerus? You’ve probably figured out that he wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer.
· His elevator didn’t go to the top floor.
· He was a few sandwiches short of a picnic.
· If you held your ear up next to his head, you could hear the ocean.
Every now and then, he would do something smart like picking Esther out of a crowd, but most of the time, he didn’t have a clue. And in a particularly clueless moment, he appointed a guy named Haman as his Vizier. Haman was a really bad guy. People really hated him. They used to hate him in installments so it would last longer. Haman looked down on everybody he saw, even when he was looking in the mirror. He made everyone in Shushan bow down to him. When Mordecai wouldn’t bow down, Haman was so mad that he wasn’t satisfied just being mean to Mordecai. Haman talked King Ahaseuerus and asked the King if he could borrow the royal signet ring for a while just to do one or two evil things. He said: “I’ll just use your ring to order all of the Jews in Shushan to be killed and then I’ll give it right back” The King, who was, of course, not paying attention, said: “Sure! Whatever! I have some drinking to do anyhow.”
I told you the King was a few cheerios shy of a bowl.

Chapter Four: Esther Takes a Chance

Well, when the Jews of Shushan heard about the how Haman had talked the King into letting Haman issue the order to kill all the Jews in Shushan they were pretty upset. They mourned and prayed and dressed themselves in sackcloth and ashes. It looked like the only chance they had to save themselves was if Esther went to the King to talk him out of Haman’s awful plan. The problem was that anyone who went to see the King without being invited would be killed, unless the King raised his golden scepter to greet them. Esther decided to take a chance.

Chapter Five: Top Chef

Esther decided that she would invite the King to a special dinner. She told him to bring Haman along. But first she had to invite the King…and that meant going to see him without an invitation. If the King didn’t raise his golden scepter to welcome her, she would be killed!… What a mess…Esther was stressed: would she pass the test? Would the King be impressed? Would her best be less than she guessed? Would the scepter best her? Poor Esther….If the King wasn’t happy to see her--- Let’s put it this way: if the King wasn’t happy to see her, tonight’s story would be called the Book of Vashti, because Vashti was the runner up. But the King lifted his scepter, and accepted Esther’s invitation to dinner.

The King came to dinner as he had promised, and the party was a big success. The King was so pleased that he offered Esther anything she wished, even up to half the kingdom. If Esther had wanted, she could have asked for the half of the kingdom that went from the ground to halfway up in the air, and this would be a short story instead of a whole megillah. Esther didn’t ask for half of anything, but asked the King to come back for another feast the next night… and to bring Haman.

Chapter Six: I Love a Parade

During this time, it happened that King Ahaseuerus couldn’t sleep, and there was nothing on cable except “According to Jim” reruns. Which is sort of what you’re all getting right now. So the King asked someone to read to him from the official records of the King’s court. Which is about as interesting as most TV reruns, but the King was trying to get back to sleep. It so happened that they read the King the story of how Mordecai had saved his life. He asked what had been done to reward Morty…and he found out nothing had been done! So the King called Haman into see him and said “I’m thinking of doing something special for someone…What would you suggest as a big reward?”
Well remember that Haman’s favorite person in the whole world was …. Haman. So he thought that HE was the man the King wanted to reward. So he told the King…”Give this special guy a suit of your own clothes, and put him on one of your own royal horses, and have some very important guy lead him through the streets of the city, saying, ‘ Thus shall be done to the man the King delights to honor!’ That would do for a start.” So the king told Haman to do all those things for Mordecai!

So Haman had to lead Mordecai through the city in a little parade. Haman was not happy.

Chapter Seven: The Second Banquet

Well if you were paying attention, you’ll remember that Esther had invented the King and Haman back for a second banquet. She was having goose. She was hoping it was Haman’s goose that would be cooked. Esther could cook as good as she looked, which was saying something. The King was so happy that he offered Esther anything he wanted, even half the kingdom. I don’t want to tell the joke about the half the kingdom offer again, but I’ll tell half of it again if you want.

Instead of asking for half the kingdom, Esther told the King about Haman’s evil plot to kill all the Jews. As dumb as King Ahaseuerus was, he was smart enough to figure out what everybody else in the Kingdom already knew: Haman was a creep. So here’s what Haman said: It’s a knock knock joke:

[Haman (to audience):]
Knock knock
Who’s there?
Haman
Haman who?
Haman biiiiiiig trouble.

Chapter Eight: The Long Hamantaschen Goodbye

Well, Haman was done for. Let’s sing a song about that:

Na na na na
Na na na na
Hey Haman, good bye….

[Haman takes off his jewelry and hat and leaves the stage, while everyone waves goodbye.]

But the Jews were still in trouble, too. The King’s order to carry out Haman’s plan and kill all the Jews couldn’t be taken back because it had been sealed with the King’s ring. Oy. But Esther and Mordecai had a few ideas.

The King gave Esther all of Haman’s properrty, and gave Mordecai his ring to see if Mordecai could figure out what to do. Morty gave out an order that the Jews were allowed to defend themselves. And that’s exactly what they did…

Chapter Nine: Party On, Jewish Dudes

The Jews defended themselves and were so happy that they had been saved that they declared that Purim would be a holiday for Jews forever. The drinking and the hamantaschen came later.

Chapter Ten: Mordecai Gets a Job

Mordecai was smart and the King needed all the help he could get. So Mordecai became the King’s vizier. And our old pal Haman? Here’s another joke:

Where’s Haman?
Who’s he?
He’s the King’s vizier
He vizier a while ago! …… but now he’s gone and we’re not!

So three cheers for Mordecai [cheer for Mordecai] and three more for Queen Esther! [Cheer for Esther] And happy Purim to everyone!

Everyone sings “Hag Purim” and marches around…

It's been too long!

2008-03-16T20:27:00.005-04:00

Come on people. January was the last post?! There are a billion of us. We can do better than that. To provide a little inspiration, here are some super cute pictures of Charlotte from their visit!

Of course, I would never dream of forgetting to post pictures of my equally adorable other nieces, Dovi and Gabi :-D

Long time, no see

2008-01-24T09:12:00.000-05:00

I apologize to all for my long absence from Kesslerville. It's been a little crazy, but that's no excuse. When even Zoe's engagement news and Charlotte pictures didn't rouse me, I knew things were bad. the problem is that I'm not spending time on the right things. For example, I have given no thought whatsoever to the fact that I know nothing about druidry. Just at the crucial moment, though, the Shelburne Falls Yoga Center came through to help out:

Intro to Druidry Workshop ($50)
Sunday Feb 17th, 11.30am - 5pm at Shelburne Falls Yoga Studio
What is a Druid? How do we find our true path on our individual and shared earthwalks? How do we find the health and happiness that is our birthright? How do we become wise human beings, capable of making a difference, as Caretakers of the Earth? All this will be discussed and techniques shared, as Fearn and Ivan introduce the life and magical world of the modern Druid.
For more info and workshop registration please contact Fearn at
fearnessence@gmail.com or 802-505-8011

Then again, maybe I just need the football season to be over.

If I get really ambitious, I'll send out an email to try to rally the Kesslerville faithful and bring back the blog. Until then, ciao!

The Conversation

2007-12-04T10:58:00.001-05:00

As you can see, Charlotte doesn't really speak English yet. But she thinks she does!

I'm Engaged!

2007-11-13T09:41:00.000-05:00

I turned 25 this last Sunday, a big birthday! As it turned out, it was a bigger than just a birthday. Sunday, David and I went to my favorite place for breakfast, then to an afternoon showing of "Lars and the Real Girl" which I highly recommend, and then to our favorite State Park Pedernales Falls. After a beautiful walk, we settled at our favorite picnic spot: a giant bath-tub shaped hole in the rock overlooking a cave at the water's edge. I have been expecting this sometime soon, but nevertheless David caught me by total surprise as he distracted me while setting up the camera and pulling out the beautifully custom crafted ring. He captured this complete surprise on camera, which will forever make me laugh. On top of all this, his present to me at my birthday party the night before was a temperpedic mattress topper. I've been sleeping like a log the past few days :-D Enjoy the pictures!

Commodore Ari

2007-10-09T09:34:00.000-04:00

Commodore Ari's blog of his triumphant tour of the Far East can be found on www.xanga.com/arikessler. Have a great time, good luck and Godspeed Ari!!!

2007-10-05T13:13:00.000-04:00

Josh may have sent this to you already, but if not, here's a chance to put democracy to work.

Here is the info that Josh sent to me:

Hello All,
Recently, I entered the Alternative Pick, Alt Pick Awards Contest. There are two types of awards for the contest; one juried and one people’s choice. The images I entered are selected from a ten part series I did for AARP. Photographed in ten cities over two weeks, from Alaska to Puerto Rico, fifteen planes, eight rental cars, king crab to chili relleno, countless cups of coffee, amazing people and amazing stories. For this assignment a parka shared space in my backpack with flip flops and produced some of the best photographs of my career.

The voting is open to anyone so vote for me, tell all of your friends to vote for me and coerce your friends and neighbors to do the same.

head to:
http://awards.altpick.com/

Some helpful hints (from Nim), based on my effort to cast a vote:

When you go to the website, in order to vote, you have to *register*. Go to the link that says "register to judge." There will be a login form (with blanks for user name and password). Below the login, on the same page, you should see a form to register. The form makes it seem that you are registering to enter the contest, but the registration is really for voting only.

When you log in, go to the "Judging" section. The entries are divided by category. You want the "photography" "series" section. Also, Josh has discovered that the entries are reshuffled each time someone votes, so his entry could be anywhere from #1 to # 157. Look for the title, "Financial makeover," and a photo thumbnail of two people standing in front of some western mountain scenery. :

To vote: after you have found Josh's photo series in the "Judging" section, click on the thumbnail photo, then click on "nominate this entry". Go back to the judging section and it should say "1 nomination" next to "Photo" "Series". Click on the "Voting" link, and give Josh "first place". Submit your vote, and Voila! the voice of the people will be heard.

Go Josh!

L'Shana Tovah

2007-09-18T09:44:00.000-04:00

L'Shana Tovah to everyone! This year promises to be one of new beginnings for a lot of us - Ms. Shoshie goes to Washington, Ari bringing new meaning to the Love Boat, Jonah (Rev Tuviah) and Julia, maybe even a Figure Ground tour. Wishing all of you a year of health, happiness and peace and unbridled success in all the new endeavors.

photos!

2007-09-04T10:10:00.000-04:00

This is Ari performing at the luna lounge in brooklyn:

and here is josh in figure ground:

and here is Henry after performing in the band:

and these are all of their fans:

Family Fantasy Football

2007-08-25T13:30:00.000-04:00

Everyone,

I am trying to get a family fantasy football league started. At the moment, my father (Sandy), Ari, Jonah, myself, possibly Seth, and Dan Geffen are all already signed up. We are looking for at least two more people but, would love to expand to as many as possible. The league is not for money it is merely for pride and a way to truly show your dominance over your other cousins (football dominance that is).

We are hoping to have th draft on Labor Day or sometime close to that so please if your interested email me as soon as possible: kessleoz@email.uc.edu

I'm really sorry this post does not have any posts of Charlotte or any baby related material but, I guess that is just part of football.

Also, Booker has already declined repeated invitations to be in this league so he is hereby banned forever....

Love,
Oren

Charlotte is 1!

2007-07-12T12:56:00.001-04:00

Well, not technically. Not until July 20th. But that didn't stop us from already having a birthday party for her! In the traditional Derrow family way, she had her first experience with cake at her first birthday party. And in the traditional Derrow family way, the results are super-cute:

"This party is lame..."

"What's this?"

"Mmmmph"

"Sorry, did you want a bite?"

"Maybe I can get more if I lick the table..."

one of the four questions:

2007-07-05T20:09:00.001-04:00

Booker, was it just your birthday?

Blog Activity

2007-06-25T16:13:00.000-04:00

It appears that the level of activity on Kesslerville has plummeted. Has anyone else noticed that the once vibrant blog has ground to a halt since the publication of numerous pictures of Oren? Coincidence??? I think not.

Susie's Honor

2007-06-21T09:57:00.000-04:00

I'm sorry that it's taken me so long to report in on the Carlebach Shul's banquet honoring Susie. The dinner was held at an event space on the Hudson River. Drinks and hors d'oeuvres were in a spectacular glass-enclosed room that looked out over the water in three directions. The remarks made on Susie's behalf were very genuine and hear-felt and it appeared that they appreciate her almost as much as we all do. Her speech was beautiful, especially when she spoke of her joy that Aunt Mollie was able to be there. The Geffens were resplendent - Peter was surrounded by his colleagues and students of years past, toasts were made to Jonah and Julia, Nessa made a triumphant return, and Dan Geffen (Man of Distinction) was every bit as distinctive as always. It was wonderful to see Susie finally get some recognition for taking care of all of us all of these years.

Baruch Dayan Emet

2007-06-04T10:15:00.000-04:00

For those of you who may not have heard, I'm sorry to report that Linda's Mother, Shu, died last Friday. Services were yesterday and the family is sitting Shiva at Mac's house this week. Our condolences go out to the entire Schloss family.

New Charlotte Video

2007-05-25T14:00:00.000-04:00

I also have a youtube video to share! Here's the most recent in the Charlotte series you all have come to know and love. She doesn't look as good as Oren, but who does? Just hit play:

The Hopeless Detective

2007-05-23T10:43:00.000-04:00

i made this over the summer and i just now figured out how to put it online! anyway, i hope you enjoy :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TX6WyA22D4

The day I was a SuperMOdel

2007-05-18T19:55:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone,
Sorry I haven't posted in awhile. But, after my experience in the SuperMOdeling world I figured it was about time to give everyone a sample of... The day I was a SuperMOdel!

Alright, so let's start from the beginning. My girlfriend, Michelle, is a fabulous fashion designer from far away France (Cincinnati, Ohio). She has been working her trade now for about 35 year (actually 3 years or so). And she is swelled with wealth and fortune (we will leave that as it is). Anyways, she had to do a project for some small art institute to show her superior abilities (she was working on a school project) and she decided to make yours truly (her muse) a suit... Not any suit... A SUPER Suit. But, we will get to that a little later. So as the story goes the amazing Michelle constructed a suit out of gold (wool) and diamonds (silk).

It took years to make... many years (about 2 months) and when it was finished there was whispers that it gave eternal life. Because of these amazing suit abilities it was dubbed the SUPER Suit or SS for short. She carried said suit all the way to the French American Kentucky Chamber of Commerce fashion show. Where her muse (ME) gave a fabulous performance in suit wearing techniques... yes I am now full of eternal life... and gas. I swayed and wobbled my way up and down the run way for about a minute and a half and later received a fabulous check for $50!!! That's right you know those stories that don't go anywhere and have no pertinent information but, end with finding $5. Well this is nothing like that. I got a suit and $50!! Whoohoo. Check out these pictures

Michelle hand painted the design on the green silk lining. Just to dispel all the myths that might come from this post:
1) No I am not actually the King of the World
2) Yes I do look really really good
3) No I can't grant wishes
4) Yes I do look really really good
5) Amythest still rocks
6) Yes I do look really really good

Hope my next blog comes sooner than the last.
Love,
Oren

Where is Nim?

2007-05-14T21:59:00.000-04:00

Certainly the spotlight in Kesslerville belongs on Jonah and Julia's engagement. Mazel tov to the happy couple, especially to Jonah, who has found a woman who still loves him even after she's met the mishpachah.

But that's not why I'm posting this. Take a moment, if you will, to read the preceding posts on Kesslerville. My own daughter has shamed me in front of the multitudes (although I'm kind of used to being in that position). My own brother (et tu, Bookie?) has compared me with Marie Antoinette, even though I look nothing like Kirsten Dunst (although I can see the resemblance if I look in the mirror just right.)

As the photo to the left demonstrates, even though a man may be treated as a king by others, yet may he be brought low by those he loves.

Which reminds me of a tale told by the Rabbis, of Moses at the Red Sea. The Egyptians were close behind the Children of Israel, and Moses just needed to make the waters part -- in a hurry! Unfortunately, he had left his mystic rod with his irresponsible brother Aaron, who was hanging out way in the back of the assembled Israelites. Moses thought quickly and said "Throw it to me, brother," and Aaron, with a mighty heave threw Moses' staff across the entire nation of Israel. Moses caught it, parted the Red Sea, and thus (as you have probably guessed) created the first forward passover. And to this day, every football coach will tell you that you can't get anywhere without the help of your staff.

And yet...Booker wanted to know why I was reluctant to share my Passover story....I think you can see why I hesitated...which reminds me of another story, but I'll save it.

Thanks to Rosa and Booker for prompting me back into action. No good deed goes unpunished, and to prove it, here is a photo of Rosa that I just came across:

She hasn't changed a bit...

Geffens on the Move

2007-05-14T09:17:00.000-04:00

Susie and I are overjoyed to inform you that our son, Jonah
and Julia Mannes
are engaged to be married.
Jonah gave Julia a beautiful ring on erev shabbat, friday night.
Mazal Tov!,
Peter

2007-05-11T20:29:00.000-04:00

where is my father!!??

Passover Greetings

2007-04-16T11:16:00.000-04:00

Hello to all -

It is now April 16, 2007 and Kesslerville is remarkably silent of any posts by Mr. James Kessler presenting his annual Passover D'Var Torah. Well, Mr. Kessler, you know what happened to Marie Antoinette when she ignored the demands of the great unwashed rabble (or Rebel) for Chumitz!!!! Do not dare to keep us waiting any longer!

More of Avi and Ginger's Silly Char-latte :-D

2007-02-26T16:13:00.000-05:00

So Avi, with his busy schedule, has failed to post this latest video for all the family to see. It's quite ridiculous!
Bath fun!

Add to My Profile | More Videos

Dan at the restaurant

2007-02-25T22:21:00.000-05:00

As you may know, Dan Kessler, a/k/a Dan Bond, is working at a NYC restaurant called "City Hall." Josh, Hillel and I went to see the place. Hillel and I, ever sensitive to the feelings of others, wanted to stay outside the restaurant, but Josh insisted that we go inside. The owner took us down to see Dan, and asked him to give us a tour of the place. Amazingly, Dan was not even slightly embarrassed that his father and uncles had showed up at his new job! [Note: some parts of this story (i.e., the facts) have been changed to make everyone but Josh looke better.]

Pammy in Santa Fe

2007-02-25T22:04:00.000-05:00

I promised to post a photo of my visit to Pammy in Santa Fe. For some reason, at the precise moment I snapped her picture, she happened to be reading. What are the odds against that! BTW, she seems to be doing very well, and Santa Fe is holding its own.

Party for Shirl

2007-02-21T20:39:00.000-05:00

This was a real nice (kosher) clambake,
We're mighty glad we came.
The vittles we et
Were good, you bet
The company was the same.
Our hearts are warm,
Our bellies are full,
And we are feeling prime.
This was a real nice clambake,
And we all had a real good time!

It was really nice to be in Youngstown with all of my siblings to wish Shirl a non-birthday. The jokes were as bad as usual, but the arrangements went amazingly smoothly, given the personnel involved. Booker managed to make all the arrangements and - incredibly - keep them secret from everyone but the FIA (Flo's Intelligence Agency). Even though all of the airports on the continent were in turmoil from last week's snowstorm, we managed to fly in from all points of the compass with only a few delays and one cancelled flight. Shirl was truly surprised, or faked it beautifully, and no one wrecked a rental car or lost luggage.

It was sad that Aunt Dorothy was not there, of course. If someone has an update, please post it. It was also frustrating, as usual, that there was not time enough to get the news from everybody, which is particularly hard on me because when I got back to Massachusetts, Sara wanted to know all of the news about everybody, and I was way short on the crucial details. I hope that we can find a way to get there for Pesach, or for Shirl's actual birthday, but we'll have to see...

I Blame Myself

2007-02-14T11:24:00.000-05:00

I admit it. I haven't been keeping up with my news and notes. It's been busy, but that's no excuse. The truth is that we finally got satellite TV. I was on the fence about it (for about 15 years), but at the end of this year, there seemed to be a couple of reasons (besides the Super Bowl -- if the Browns weren't in it, the Patriots were bound to be) to break down and get a dish. First, of course, "Cover Shot," with casting by Beth and co-hosting by Josh, was scheduled to be on, and Pippi's friend Nate (and schoolmate Scooter -- that's really his name) were going to be on "Beauty and the Geek."

So we got the TV dish, and of course Cover Shot went on hiatus immediately. Whatever. So Pippi and I started scouring all 160 channels to find "Beauty and the Geek," and found out it wasn't one of the 160 channels and wasn't available in our area. Well, there was always the Patriots and the Super Bowl... BTW, Nate and Scooter are the finalists in "Beauty and the Geek" tonight. Our friends tape it for us, so we've been keeping up with it a day late.

Anyhow, I have been guilty of watching TV when I should be blogging. Today I finally have some free time because of the weather. I wasn't sure whether to go to work today, because the big snow storm that just left the midwest arrived in New England. It didn't look too bad at first, and I wasn't sure whether to go, but I stayed home. Later this morning, I caught up with the National Weather Service warning:

A BLIZZARD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL MIDNIGHT EST TONIGHT. SNOW WILL BE HEAVY AT TIMES TODAY AS LOW PRESSURE STRENGTHENS AND MOVES UP THE EAST COAST. HOURLY SNOWFALL RATES WILL APPROACH OREXCEED 2 INCHES PER HOUR LATER THIS MORNING AND AFTERNOON. IN ADDITION...WINDS WILL INCREASE AS THE DAY PROGRESSES...WITHGUSTS BETWEEN 30 AND 40 MPH QUITE LIKELY BY THIS AFTERNOON. THE HEAVY SNOWFALL RATES AND THE INCREASING WINDS WILL WORK INCONCERT TO PRODUCE BLIZZARD CONDITIONS...ESPECIALLY THIS AFTERNOON INTO THE EARLY EVENING HOURS. VISIBILITIES WILL FREQUENTLY BE REDUCED TO UNDER A QUARTER MILE. THIS WILL MAKE TRAVEL DIFFICULT AT BEST...AND NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE AT TIMES.

Don't worry...we're safe and sound at home, and the snow is really beautiful, but I'm glad I wimped out...

Anyhow, I will try to come back later today and post some photos from my visit with Pammy in Santa Fe. I can also put up a picture of the blizzard, but it will mostly look white.

The Texas Rangers

2007-02-12T09:43:00.000-05:00

Henry and I went to see Aunt Dorothy yesterday for a (long-overdue) visit. Dr. Lynne and Zoe were here from the Lone Star state and we all had a good time visiting and looking through old photos. Aunt Dorothy was in good spirits and said that she was feeling well. Lynnie proudly pointed out that Aunt Dorothy hadn't needed the oxygen all afternoon and that she is hopeful that she might be able to be out and about sometime next week.

FASHION WEEK UPDATE!!! Zoe's new hairstyle is stunning and quite the rage.

Time for a new video?

2007-02-01T10:47:00.000-05:00

Well, okay...

Splashing!

Add to My Profile | More Videos

Ski Trip

2007-01-28T13:47:00.000-05:00

I know that it has been a few weeks already, but I can't believe that nobody has posted anything about our trip to Vail, Colorado. Ari and I were graciously invited to go ski and lounge with Peter, Susie, Jonah, Dan, Nessa, and some of the big-wigs in the Jewish community. We had an amazing time and want to thank Peter and Susie for letting us stay with them. Even though everyone on the mountain had something to say about our "outdated" skis (Ari and I prefer to classify them as vintage), we still got in a glorious six days on the slopes. We even got to ski with Mark, a friend of my dad's from the farm era- Oh the stories he told! The only major bummer of the entire trip was that Jonah and Dan got sick and missed a few days of skiing....that, and the national championship game. One of the highlights of the trip for me was skiing Riva Ridge (Poppa's favorite run) and soaking in the magnificent view.
Thanks again to Peter and Susie,
~Ben

P.S. Hopefully we'll get some pictures up on the blog soon

Fair Warning

2007-01-27T04:24:00.000-05:00

Just a warning to those who might choose to visit Youngstown.

Sammy's just past his 2nd Birthday (October), and 2nd anniversary of Becka showing up with him in a cat carrier. He wanted to see HIS picture here after seeing all the pictures of other people's kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids.

(This picture's about a year old.)

Sammy's primary skill is pishing on visitor's shoes. Stop by if you want your shoes washed....

Regards,

Stu.

Locks of Love has my hair hostage!

2007-01-23T17:17:00.000-05:00

So I made the bold move and finally cut my hair after growing it out for 2 solid years! I loved long hair on me, don't get me wrong. But I mostly loved it after it was nice and styled. All other occasions it caused me more trouble than it was worth. Tangling was the biggest issue. I simply couldn't figure out how to keep it from getting tangled and was losing more and more hair every time I had to untangle a massive rat's nest in the shower while using practically half a bottle of conditioner. My goal was to grow my hair out until I could donate it to locks of love, meaning a minimum of 10 inches of donation. I also was striving to get it longer than it had been since I was a wee little one and I accomplished that as well.

I went to Christy's hair stylist which turned out excellently. I would recommend her to anyone and everyone: Crystal at Joie de Vie on E 6th between Red River and IH 35. She made my remaining locks into an adorable funky, yet sophisticated bob with dark red, blonde, and my natural hair all interwoven together. I love it!

P.S. I only posted this so Rosa wouldn't feel so bad ;)

2007-01-22T23:46:00.000-05:00

Wow... I guess i really know how to drive everybody away... Are you there Kesslerville? It's me, Buzzkill Rosie.

2007-01-07T20:37:00.000-05:00

Thumbs up to my cousin Henry for leading a really fun tour of the Metropolitan Museum of Art today. Henry, I hope you still remember me even when you become a famous curator. Its too bad we had to hang out with Booker character...

Oversight...I think not!!!

2006-12-29T09:47:00.000-05:00

I was reading my favorite monthly publication, The Week Magazine, when I saw an article devoted to the internecine battles arising from an egregious slight in the world famous blog, Kesslerville. In an attempt to bring some peace to this conflict-filled world of ours....mea culpa, mea culpa... how could I neglect to include the eminent clan of Effron in my New Year's greetings? Happy New Year to all, and to all a good night!

Tidings of Comfort and Joy...or something like that

2006-12-28T16:55:00.000-05:00

I want to wish each every Kessler, Mulne, Cohen, Heberlein, Schiff, Derrow, Geffen, Overbeke, Bill, and all affiliated tribal entities a healthy, happy, and safe New Year. Let's all hope that we can enjoy as many (and more) mitzvahs in 2007 as we had in 2006.

Yet Another Video

2006-12-11T10:38:00.000-05:00

Videos are cool. Witness:

Laughing Part II

Celebrity Look Alike Finder

2006-12-09T22:26:00.000-05:00

So i found this website (www.myheritage.com) and if you upload your photo, it will tell you who your celebrity look alikes are. Anyway, I was playing around with it and thought you guys might be interested:

You asked for it

2006-12-07T14:01:00.000-05:00

Or, well, Booker and Rosa asked for it.

Sitting with her Uncle Sol, the unkempt version

Staring at her Bubby, also smiling

Wearing a hat made by her Aunt Lynne, handed down from Dovi and Gabi

Trying on her new snowsuit - it took 20 minutes for us to find her face in there

Josh on TV?

2006-12-03T15:17:00.000-05:00

So, how come Josh wasn't on TV? I went to TLC at 10:00 pm last Friday night and he wasn't there. What gives?

Festivities a la Mollie

2006-11-30T09:28:00.000-05:00

To those of you who were not fortunate enough to make it home for last weekend's festivities, you truly missed out! Aunt Mollie was delighted by the services (led by Sandy, with a great Dvar Torah by Sue and a beautiful 80th Birthday ceremony by Peter), the kiddush, the party at Sandy and Chaya's, the slide show/video, and, of course, the performance of a lifetime, Ari and Oren debuting their medley of their international mega-hits, "B-U-B-B-E" and "The Lunch of a Thousand Casseroles". The current buzz has it that Wilson Picket is going to return from the grave to record "The Lunch of A Thousand Casseroles" as a follow up to "The Land of a Thousand Dances." Local news sources reported that sales at the local malls increased by 300%. And, most importantly of all, Sonny and Marilyn's cake was sublime.

Happy Thanksgiving

2006-11-24T23:49:00.000-05:00

Thanks to all for helping the blog limp along without help from certain slackers (like me). We are sorry we won't be in Youngstown for Thanksgiving or Mollie's party, but we were racking up points on the Mitzvah Meter by taking Thanksgiving-to-go to Woods Hole.

Pippi, Rosa and I have been saying we need to crank up a new blog-related project: the long-delayed, much needed, family cook book. I have put a couple of recipes up on the blog, but there are so many parts of the family repertoire still to be documented. It's too late tonight to start, but we'll try and get the ball rolling this weekend....stay tuned.

Rosie's to Blame

2006-11-22T09:27:00.000-05:00

Let's see now...Rosie posts a note to the blog...Rosie removes the note due to its scandalous content...there are no further posts and the once vibrant Kesslerville suddenly goes silent...ergo: Rosie clearly has chased everyone away and single handedly crushed Kesslerville, the only source of light for so many of us.

Oh well, I guess the only way we can all deal with all of this adversity is to have a healthy, happy holiday! I would telly you not to eat too much, but this, after all, is going out to the members of the Kessler family. So go have fun (if you can with that notorious buzz-kill Rosie hanging around) and stay safe. To those of you who can't make it home for the Mollie festivities, come home soon! To the rest, see you this weekend!

2006-11-10T19:27:00.000-05:00

um... i hope i didn't upset anybody with my last post (it's deleted now). I hadn't noticed that the uniforms in the picture were nazi uniforms... also, i just didn't really think about the picture much in general before I posted it. I just thought, "oh look, the name kessler really big with rebel and leor's names too!" then i looked at the picture more closely after i posted it and felt pretty disturbed... yeah... woops...

JOSH ALERT!!!! JOSH ALERT!!!! JOSH ALERT!!!!

2006-11-08T14:30:00.000-05:00

Friday, December 1, 2006 at 10:00 pm on TLC will mark the television debut of Joshua Kessler, photographer extraordinaire. Tune in to the show COVER SHOT and marvel at the handiwork of not one, but two Schifflers (Josh's photos and Beth's talent coordination). Media inquiries should be directed to the couple of the moment.

Another video!

2006-10-22T15:23:00.000-04:00

I don't mean to hog the blog, but I've got another cute video of Charlotte laughing, caught on tape for the first time. You'll want to watch this one with sound.

Laughing

Mollie's turning 40! (or some multiple thereof)

2006-10-16T22:37:00.000-04:00

Let it be known that on Nov. 25 we are going to celebrate with Mom a special day. We'll do lunch after schul (please rsvp to Chaya) and then have a family get together at our house in the evening. Anyone who was debating whether to come to Youngstown that weekend should just say yes - the more the merrier. Please spread the word!

Pictures!

2006-10-11T14:47:00.000-04:00

Hi Everyone! Hope all is well! Rosa, I saw your comment about more pictures from the wedding, so I thought I would pass this link along...you can find a sampling of the pictures that the photographer posted online by clicking here:

http://www.collages.net/store/guest_login.asp?username=Bill&password=6102

Also, Romy, what is the dancesisterdance thing? I tried to check it out, but the link did not work. Am I just too late?

Love from Atlanta,
Jamie

No comment...

2006-10-04T16:23:00.000-04:00

I just love this picture:

and, um, this one too:

Aunt Dorothy Update

2006-10-04T09:46:00.000-04:00

Quick note - spoke to my Mom last night and she talked to Aunt Dorothy who is at home. They're giving her medication for the blood clot and she's doing much better.

Aunt Dorothy Update

2006-10-02T19:33:00.000-04:00

Hi Everybody - I just wanted to let everybody know (in case you didn't hear already) Aunt Dorothy went into the hospital last night. It sounds like she had a blood clot in her leg and maybe some other stuff too. I'm actually in Youngstown right now, and Grandma Shirl and I went to visit her at her house yesterday and she seemed fine, and then she even came to temple and looked great (as usual), but I guess when she got back from temple she ended up going in to the hospital. Grandma Shirl just spoke with her on the phone and she said they are going to do more tests and then hopefully she'll be home soon.

Another new year

2006-09-29T22:05:00.000-04:00

It's been a long time since I've visited our blog, sorry to say, but it seemed like a good time now that another year has passed. Chaya and I had mom, Amy and Aunt Shirley over for Shabbat dinner tonight - Ell was marching at yet another football game after which she'll be sleeping over a friend's house. Awfully quiet in here! Sherry's a grandma, Ron & Linda are parent-in-laws, a bunch of kids are back in school, a bunch more have finished and are heading out to the great unkown. Awesome - life is so wonderfully dynamic. May all of our lives stay rich and varied, may we always remember how lucky we are to have each other in this amazing family, and may the days and weeks ahead bring health, happiness and beauty in all of our lives.

URGENT!!

2006-09-23T00:22:00.000-04:00

http://www.dancesisterdance.com/myvid/index.php?v=4be2ab4d2ab6e

if you go to this site, you will smile.

oh, and the newlyweds...

http://www.dancesisterdance.com/myvid/index.php?v=203b1ef531975

Time Flies Like an Arrow -Kesslerville's 1st Anniversary

2006-09-21T17:23:00.000-04:00

How the months do go by! I checked the blog and noticed that somewhere along the way we passed Kesslerville's first anniversary (well, the archive goes back a year anyhow). I extend heartfelt thanks and a sincere "Mazal Tov" to everyone who has contributed: We have kept it clean, kept it interesting, and kept it relevant to the big issues, or at least relevant to the big parties. (woohoo!).

So - keep those posts and pictures and recipes and wedding announcements and music and film reviews and bad jokes coming! Kesslerville is only as good as its hard-working staff of editors -- which is probably why we haven't been approached by any of the big media companies with buy-out offers.

Remember -- there are only a limited number of people in the world who laugh at our jokes, and an awful lot of them work for this blog!

PS: L'shanah tovah! Are there chopped liver recipes we need to be sharing?

Wedding...err baby pictures!

2006-09-19T23:28:00.000-04:00

I just realized I forgot to post the pictures I took at the wedding...which somehow ended up being entirely of Charlotte. Though I think I deserve a break for this considering I'd just met her!

Austin City Limits Three Day Music Festival

2006-09-18T10:35:00.000-04:00

Let me first start out by saying that there are no words to describe the experience that this last
weekend offered me, but I plan on attempting anyhow. This was my first ACL as last year I was "employed" by Americorps and couldn't afford food, let alone entertainment. Thinking ahead, I purchased two ACL tickets the moment they came out at the cheapest price available. Thank the freakin' Lord that Becky went with me to this. I can't fathom a better time with a more easygoing, chill partner in crime. If anyone was even remotely uptight, it would've been me merely at the times when we were surrounded by 75,000 people moving quickly through the crowd.

Over the course of three days and nearly 30 hours, we saw 25 bands perform. In order of sheer
awesomeness, with #1 being the greatest, here are the list of bands we saw. Keep in mind that
some of these shows were a serious toss-up as far as who was the better performer...particularly the shows near the top of the list.

1. Matisyahu - Jewish, Reggae, Rapper...UNBEFREAKINLEIVABLE
2. Ben Harper - guest performers Damian Marley and G. Love with appearances from Lance and
Matthew
3. Kings of Leon
4. Gnarls Barkley
5. Tom Petty
6. Damian Marley
7. G. Love & Special Sauce
8. Tristan Prettyman
9. Ray Lamontagne
10. Cat Power & The Memphis Rhythm Band
11. Aimee Mann
12. Galactic
13. String Cheese Incident
14. The Secret Machines
15. Los Lonely Boys
16. Guster
17. Wolf Parade
18. Van Morrison
19. Willie Nelson
20. Phoenix
21. MUSE
22. The New Pornographers
23. Nada Surf
24. John Mayer
25. The Shins

The only band that slightly disappointed of the entire above list was perhaps the Shins, as we
found ourselves bored and lazing around wondering when the show would end.

The two shows that are the most tied were Matisyahu and Ben Harper. Matisyahu was a spiritual event, and then to go immediately to Ben Harper I swear I had a spiritual awakening. Matisyahu definitely prays in a very real way in his music. It's intense to watch so many people be so smitten or mesmerized by a Hasidic Jew basically praising life and everything around him. Ben Harper performed with some guests including G. Love and Damian Marley and his musical talent was unmatched at all of ACL. He jumped from instrument to instrument. The thing that I noticed between these two bands were that they both sung incredibly uplifting music. It's not easy to influence people with such positive messages, which is why you typically see those with negativity and anger rising to the top of the charts. I had never seen Ben Harper before and both of those shows definitely took me to a different place.

I have a profound respect for anyone whose career makes such a positive impact and couldn't help but be almost proud of these musicians who bring more love and happiness to the world with what they do every day. I felt unbelievable love for Matisyahu who is a positive Jewish role model for humanity really...which is surely something we need. I truly am speechless about many of the feelings I experienced while watching these shows. I reached certain emotional highs that are not likely to be repeated anytime soon. I literally had to sit for an hour in between Matisyahu and Ben Harper and remind myself to breath normally and just feel. There were also definitely intermittent tearful moments. Among the emotions I underwent while at this festival are the following:

1. Elation
2. Utter and complete happiness and joy
3. Excitement
4. Energy
5. Love
6. Sadness
7. Jealousy - of the artists mainly and what they bring to the crowd
8. Gratefulness

I know there will be more to come on ACL blogs, perhaps a part two as I had many "epiphanies"
during these last few days that are hard to remember all in one big spurt. For now, enjoy the
pictures that I took which do not even begin to do this festival true justice.

Gnarls Barkley - Day One

Becca and I at the start of our ACL Adventure

Jason and I at Ray Lamontagne...fading fast on Day One

Kings of Leon - If only you could see this band composed of all brothers, all hot, and all wearing
very tight pants

It took me about 5 tries to finally get this picture

The beginning of Day Three sporting my homemade dress and funky glasses from an artisan shop
nearby

Yeah! Jews Kick Ass!!!

Matisyahu bringing the crowd to a different world

Happier than I ever thought possible

Ben Harper was amazing

Bringing it home with former Americorps buddies at Tom Petty, Final Concert of the
Festival...sad, exhausted, rained-on (which was awesome)

To those of you who I had planned to hook up with, I gave up towards the beginning of the
weekend when I realized it probably wasn't worth the constant calling back and forth and
shouting into the phone. Also, I had definitely planned to go out at night mainly to show my
cousin Becca a good time. We were so crazy exhausted each day that it just wasn't feasible. If
you were there, show some love. If you weren't there, get ready for next year! I love you all and to all a good night!

2006-09-18T10:32:00.000-04:00

A Change of Pace

2006-09-18T08:58:00.000-04:00

Everyone says how cute Charlotte is, so I'm gonna change things up a bit and post her two worst pictures to date. The first is just an unfortunately timed picture of her chillin' on the couch. Pretty bad, right? The second is her passport photo, which looks exactly like a mugshot. That, and her mouth is forming an almost perfectly shaped frown, like Beaker from the Muppets (picture 3). I hate to burst your bubble, shatter your illusions, and rain on your parade, but she's human and imperfect and here's the proof:

2006-09-12T21:43:00.000-04:00

Here are some photos from the wedding; I haven't really sorted them out, but it wasn't my best overall photo effort...I think I somehow neglected to take any photos of Brian at all...which he may thank me for. Anyhow, here are photos of the bride and her father, some creative floor mat work, and Aunt Dorothy off-roading in her wheel chair.

Pammy in Santa Fe

2006-09-12T21:14:00.000-04:00

As many blog fans know, Pammy is taking her "term abroad" in New Mexico. She has been on the Annapolis campus of St. John's college for the past two years and is taking advantage of the fact that St. John's has a second campus in Santa Fe, NM. Since St. John's does not have any real term anywhere else options, it's necessary to go to the New Mexico campus to get a change of scenery. So here is the scenery! The first photo is more or less in the parking lot of the college, and the second photo is the view out of Pammy's dorm room window.
Not that you asked, but here's my recipe for huevos rancheros: For one serving, beat two large eggs in a bowl with a tiny bit of salt. In a small, oven proof frying pan, heat a small amount of olive oil over medium heat. Put a corn tortilla the same size as the pan (flour tortillas also work) into the oil until the bottom is just beginning to brown. Flip over the tortilla, and immediately pour the beaten eggs over the tortilla. When the egg mixture is beginning to set, cover with a handful or so of grated or shredded cheddar or monterey jack cheese (for a nice extra fillip, add a little bit of Cabot chipotle cheddar - not really pimiento cheese at all). Put the pan into a preheated oven at 350 degrees and bake until the top of the huevos browns nicely. Slide out of the pan and serve immediately with New Mexican style red sauce or good salsa (my favorite is Green Mountain Gringo if you can find it). I will try to give the red sauce recipe sometime soon, but I have to do some kitchen testing. For more servings of the huevos, use a larger pan and more tortillas, cheese and eggs. The rest is pretty much the same, but when you take the huevos out of the pan, cut it into servings with a pizza cutter.

More pictures!

2006-09-05T07:15:00.000-04:00

It was great seeing everyone at Jamie and Brian's wedding this past weekend, and I hope they're having a great time in Hawaii. A few cousins I talked to said they'd like to see a few more Charlotte pictures. I always do what the cousins say.
Enjoy.

Contest Results

2006-08-28T11:17:00.000-04:00

To those of you who don't read "The New Yorker Magazine", HARRY WON! HARRY WON! HARRY WON!

Please refer to the Effron family for further details.

Overbeke Updates

2006-08-27T15:37:00.000-04:00

Well, Gracie just finished directing her show at the Cleveland Playhouse and she was completely sold out for both performances!

And I'm now home from Northwestern and made a movie while down there.

Mom just did a funny dance.

So we've all made our contributions to entertainment this summer.

well i'm quite busy with the college apps currently or else i'd write more.

Checking In

2006-08-16T09:32:00.000-04:00

It's been a while since I, or anyone else for that matter, have posted on Kesslerville. First things first. Aunt Dorothy is back in Northside Hospital again. I stopped to see her last night and she was eating her dinner, her color was good, and she didn't have any trouble talking. She looked a lot better than when I had seen her last week at her house, so hopefully they're doing something right for her in the hospital. The good Dr. Arlynne was en route and Becky and both Sherries were there.

Now on a more positive note. I just want to make sure that everyone is meditating, doing yoga, and whatever else they must do to gear up for Jamie's upcoming nuptual festivities. It'll be great to see you all.

2006-08-01T09:17:00.000-04:00

Hi Guys -

I received this e-mail and I think it's worth a minute of your time:

Click below to send a personal message of support and a chocolate bar to an Israeli soldier for free (courtesy of Elite and the Heritage Affinity Services credit card). Please forward this to others, too.
http://www.websense-media.co.il/has_200706/default.asp?gid=friend

While we're at it we should also send some prayers their way.

Time to stuff the ballot box

2006-07-31T10:22:00.000-04:00

If any of you are New Yorker magazine caption contest aficionados (and even if you're not!) , make sure you vote this week:

http://cartoonbank.com/CapContest/CaptionContest.aspx?tab=vote

Check out the author of the first finalist- need I say more?

More pictures - with eyes!

2006-07-27T14:06:00.000-04:00

She has opened her eyes. Behold:

My very first post!

2006-07-26T18:01:00.000-04:00

So I've let all you have your fun for much too long now without adding anything. I think it's time I give a brief montage of the events since college, so here goes!

Inspired by Rosa

2006-07-25T22:11:00.000-04:00

All of Rosa's photos inspired me to add two more: A view from the hike Sara and I took this weekend, and a view of Rosa from her last visit.

2006-07-24T22:11:00.000-04:00

2006-07-24T21:46:00.000-04:00

here's the bat mitzvah girls

2006-07-24T21:33:00.000-04:00

so here's some more recent pictures from lily's bat-mitzvah, also off of my dad's camera. Also - there is a picture of Ben Kessler arriving in western mass for me and pippi's summer camp (he's there right now)

2006-07-24T21:17:00.000-04:00

2006-07-24T21:13:00.000-04:00

photo catch up

2006-07-24T20:58:00.000-04:00

so i think there have been a bunch of events which never got enough photos posted... I just copied a bunch of pictures off my dad's camera and found all sorts of pictures from different kessler events all spring/summer... obviously none of the pictures will be as cute as charlotte, but I thought I should post what I could find. so here's some lucie's bat mitzvah, some kesslers in israel, and whatever else I can find that seems like it could go on kesslerville.
p.s. wow, charlotte is soooo cute!!!

Aunt Dorothy

2006-07-21T16:43:00.000-04:00

Aunt Dorothy came home today. She is still feeling pretty weak, but Grandma Shirl said that she had a good night last night. Hopefully, some good home cooking and the news of baby Charlotte's arrival will be the just what the Dr. (Arlynne) ordered.

The Next Generation

2006-07-21T14:43:00.000-04:00

She is here.

Charlotte Lauren Derrow
July 20th, 2006, 6:09 pm
9 lbs, 5.2 ounces (oh yeah)
20.75 inches
Totally awesome.

Here are some pictures. Woohoo!

Aunt Dorothy Update

2006-07-17T14:14:00.000-04:00

When Henry and I went to see Aunt Dorothy yesterday she was feeling pretty nauseous and Lynnie said that she didn't have a very good night last night. However, Grandma Shirl saw her today and she said she was doing much better and her spirits were good.

The Intrepid Travelers

2006-07-13T16:49:00.000-04:00

Here we are in Hershey, PA in front of the giant white chocolate Hershey kiss.

The Lilies

2006-07-11T09:12:00.000-04:00

Announcing the Lilie awards for 2006:

For best original comment......Moses Heberlein!!!!

"What, you mean Jesus was Jewish?????"

For best adaptation of an obscure cultural reference......Nim Kessler!!!!!!!

Hillel: And, if you look here you can see the support columns that remain from King
Herod's Turkish bath.

Nim: Yes, it was here that Herod wrote his most popular country and western hit:
"Send me the pillars that you steam on."

Nim and Moses would like to thank the Academy and all of their fans.

Into the sunset rode.....Cranzo!

2006-07-10T20:40:00.000-04:00

This is another scene from Debbie's Moshav. There is a companion photo, which someone should post, which shows off the outstanding donkey-leading technique (by me) that was amusing Sara....

A picture for Rosa

2006-07-09T22:02:00.000-04:00

Rosa asked for more Israel pictures. It takes a long time to post them, but here is one more until we can figure out how to get them up on a web site (Josh has volunteered a location, so we'll see if that works.) This is a photo of assorted Kesslerim on the top of Masada. If there was a speech bubble, it would show us all saying "Why didn't we take the cable car?!"

Dateline: Israel

2006-07-04T11:50:00.000-04:00

The Holy Land has survived invasion, natural disasters, political crises and religious infighting, but after Lil '06 -- The Bat Mitzvah -- it may never be the same. We will individually and collectively tell the whole story soon, with photos, more often than anyone will want to hear it, but in the meantime, here is an appetizer, taken on Debbie and Ezra's moshav in the Negev. The temperature was approximately 110 degrees Fahrenheit, but because of the low humidity, it only felt like 43 degrees centigrade. The camel asked that its name be withheld. See everyone soon.

2006-06-26T20:39:00.000-04:00

for those of you who have not yet heard, oren kessler is now the president of his fraternity house.

Let the revelry begin!

2006-06-22T23:48:00.000-04:00

Sara and I take off tomorrow on our trip to Paris (which is all intended as a warmup for the Israel leg of the journey. The French government has been negotiating furiously to have us diverted to Lichtenstein, but so far so good.

Next week (or so) in Jerusalem!

Where's Waldo / Ari's Graduation

2006-06-22T13:46:00.000-04:00

As the tech savvy member of the Youngstown Kesslers, I was elected unanimously to post the most recent pictures of our family's endeavors. First, we are all proud of Ari for graduating from The Ohio State University (magna cum laude). The graduation was held in the football stadium and Ari graduated among about a million others. Please enjoy the following pictures and see if you can find Ari graduating through the crowd (I helped):

Ellyanna recently once again dazzled an audience- this time at her end of the year paino recital:
In other news, Oren is still...Oren:
As for me [not pictured] ...well...let's just say I am much less busy now than I was at school, and I'm enjoying it.

The Countdown Begins

2006-06-15T09:22:00.000-04:00

We received our invitation yesterday to the international gala event of the century. We're beginning to gear up for the trek and are really starting to get excited. Good luck Lil!!!!

Aunt Dorothy's Triumphant Return!

2006-06-09T09:25:00.000-04:00

Aunt Dorothy has left the building! Aunt Dorothy has left the building! Or was that Elvis? Anyway, Aunt Dorothy has returned home and reports have it that, although tired, she is doing well.

Aunt Dorothy Homeward Bound

2006-06-05T09:51:00.000-04:00

News from the front reports that Aunt Dorothy is scheduled to return home on Tuesday! It's amazing what a little sharing of good karma will do.

Thanks!

2006-06-04T20:15:00.000-04:00

Bubbe (Mollie) asked me to pass along a warm thank you to everyone who sent flowers/cards/other nice things for her coming home. She is glad to be back and the house adjustments are coming along nicely.
Thanks again,
Ben

Karma Kadets Rejoice

2006-05-30T09:50:00.000-04:00

Thank you boys and girls for sending your good Karma by way of Heritage Manor. Aunt Mollie made a triumphant return home (see companion story) and Aunt Dorothy is feeling strong enough to attend Ronnie and Linda's party (see Romy's report) and to go to the movies with Sherrie. We're hoping that she will be able to return home soon. Keep the good Karma flowing!

FDA Reports Spike in Calorie Consumption

2006-05-30T09:38:00.000-04:00

Youngstown (AP) - In response to reporters' questioning as to the cause of the substantial increase in consumption of calories in Youngstown, Ohio for the month of May, the FDA stated that there is no cause for alarm. The Agency released the following statement: "Although there was a 16,000% increase for the month, our investigation has shown that this is entirely due to a spike in consumption on May 26, 2006. Further review showed that this spike coincided with the return of Mollie Kessler to her kitchen and that the total increase for the month can be attributed to that one day and also to only one street, Cranberry Run Drive, the site of her kitchen."