January 3 • 2019 5
jn

I 

can’
t wrap my brain 
around the fact 
that it’
s 2019, as 
evidenced by the first 
three checks I’
ve had to 
void since Jan. 1. 
I also can’
t come to 
terms with the fact that 
in 13 months I’
ll be 
eligible for Medicare. 
I’
m sure that’
s why I’
m experiencing an 
uptick in telemarketing calls like the 
one I received last week pitching medi-
cal-grade braces. I hung up before they 
asked me what part of my body needed 
bracing.
Which brings up another age-relat-
ed topic. When buying movie tickets 
online, if a theater doesn’
t state what 
their senior ticket price is, do you deem 
what age is appropriate to take advan-
tage of the discount? 
Age 65 makes you eligible for 
Medicare, but I’
ve seen 55 qualify for 
some senior discounts. Though I admit 
while completing my online purchase, 
I can’
t help but think that data is being 
collected and I’
ll be busted at the the-
ater, which will also reveal my trying 
to sneak in a can of caffeine-free Diet 
Coke. 
Furthermore, the older you get the 
earlier in the day you want to go to a 
movie. If you go too early, you get the 
matinee price, which just ends up being 
the same price as the senior ticket. 
Bummer. So maybe I’
ll just stay home 
and continue to abuse the privilege 
of being a guest on my son’
s Netflix 

account.
Meanwhile, I can’
t believe how old 
I’
m sounding in the previous para-
graphs. I sound like I’
m on the cusp of 
yelling at kids to get off my lawn. The 
fact is, though, I’
ve been old beyond 
my years since birth, as is evident in 
the above photo. I’
m not sure how 
old I was in that shot but I look like I 
could’
ve been the youngest member of 
the Purple Gang.
Having just spent a few days away in 
the Boca-Del Ray area has not helped 
slow my aging process, not when the 
two main activities there are making 
plans for dinner just after finishing 
lunch and discussing who’
s healing 
from what procedure.
A nice vacation moment came when 
I had a lovely encounter with a woman 
at the corner of Atlantic Boulevard 
and Gleason Street. Don’
t get the 
wrong idea. I was waiting to meet a 
friend when this nice lady wearing a 

Tigers hat acknowledged my MSU 
hat and greeted me with a jovial “Go 
Spartans!” I returned the salutation, 
saying “Go Tigers.
” This led to a con-
versation and some Detroit Jewish 
geography.
It turns out my new-found friend 
recognized me from the Jewish News 
and was a fan of the Dick Purtan 
Show. It’
s no secret I’
m desperate for 
attention so I enjoyed hearing her talk 
about me and did everything I could 
to extend the conversation about me 
until I finally caved and asked a few 
questions about her. 
Another pleasant surprise during 
my stay in South Florida was that I got 
to experience out-of-town seven-layer 
cake! If you recall, last June I wrote a 
column, For Love of Seven-Layer Cake, 
which led to the video Tour de Seven-
Layer Cake of Metro Detroit, which 
received nearly 7,000 views.
It was a rare find, but there in the 
display case of the bakery inside 
Poppies Restaurant & Deli on Linton in 
Boca, was a giant piece of the luscious 
layers! After finishing dinner, I ordered 
a slice and consumed it in its entirety. 
While it didn’
t live up to Detroit bak-
ery standards, it was definitely good 
enough to take my mind off having to 
decide where I was going have lunch 
the next day. ■

Alan Muskovitz is a writer, voice-over/acting 
talent, speaker, emcee and an occasional guest 
host on the Mitch Albom Show on WJR AM 

760. Visit his website at laughwithbigal.com.

continued on page 8

essay
Happy, Healthy Post-Rosh Hashanah, 
Second-Chance Secular New Year! 

letters

Mug Cutline
Contributing Writer

Temple Emanu-El Is 
Growing
Your recent article comparing 
current membership in Metro 
Detroit synagogues (Dec. 13, page 
10) with that of 2005 calls for me to 
point out something that I am very 
proud of. Your numbers for Temple 
Emanu-El in Oak Park are accurate, 
we did have 575 member-families 
in 2005 and today we have 355. 
However, we began 2018 with 315 

families, and we have welcomed 
40 new families this year, which 
represents more than a 10 percent 
increase, and we are still growing 
as I write this. 
Come into our building any time 
of the day or night, and you will 
find it bustling with activity. I am 
excited about our future, and we 
are in the Oak Park area to stay.

Martin Leibowitz

President, Temple Emanu-El 

How Do You Define 
Occupied Land?
I read with interest your article 
about the new Congresswomen-
elect Rashida Tlaib (Dec. 13, 
page 16). She advocates for the 
Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions 
movement against the State of 
Israel. No doubt she feels that 
Israel is occupying land she 
believes belongs to Palestinians 
and that Israelis are unjust 

views

T
h
S
s
v

Little Alan 

Muskovitz in 

the late 1950s 

or early 1960s 

Maisel Creates 
Center for Jewish 
Studies at OU

Cis Maisel is a community leader in 
Southeastern Michigan and a staunch 
education advocate. She was instru-
mental in establishing the Seminars for 
Adult Jewish Enrichment 
(SAJE), a program man-
aged by Detroit’
s Jewish 
Community Center, 
and she was recently 
introduced to Oakland 
University by President 
Ora Hirsch Pescovitz.
“I am very interested in supporting 
the study of Jewish history and cul-
ture,” says Maisel of Southfield. “When 
I learned of the excellent programs in 
Judaic studies at OU, I wanted to help 
faculty expand this curriculum with 
other programs like SAJE.”
With the idea of shared resources 
in mind, she was moved to create the 
Cis Maisel Center for Judaic Studies 
and Community Engagement. The 
new center will focus on the study 
of Judaism from an academic stand-
point as well as provide an important 
space for research that enhances the 
understanding of the rich traditions of 
Judaism from around the world.
Funding will help expand Judaic 
studies programming beyond the 
classroom. One possibility is the pres-
ervation and display of artifacts and 
sacred texts from the archives of a 
variety of organizations or from OU’
s 
study abroad program in Israel. Other 
opportunities for the future include 
events, community dialogue series and 
programs focused on Israeli films, art, 
dance, political issues, cultural tradi-
tions and more.
Maisel is looking forward to build-
ing a new level of understanding about 
Judaism. She hopes the center will 
inspire important conversations that 
contribute to peace and awareness of 
various perspectives.
“This center will help educate about 
Jewish life, traditions and values,” she 
says. “It will demonstrate how the 
Jewish people have contributed to 
society and the world. I hope these 
programs will enhance understanding 
among all people.” ■

Cis Maisel 

JEN HOGAN
SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS