Making plans to move in with a kosher roommate has really made me start to think about what I will be eating when I make the move in a month. Recently, I visited a doctor who reminded me the importance of not cheating on my gluten-free diet. It causes all sorts of problems for me (fatigue, skin problems, allergies, and down the line can contribute to diabetes and certain types of cancers). Yet, for whatever reason, I have not taken it as seriously as I should.

It’s funny for me to think about how people who are ordered to follow diets by their doctors for health reasons often cheat, and many times go back to old eating habits, yet people who commit to a kosher lifestyle will never taste a shrimp cocktail or cheeseburger ever again. How come, when it comes to faith versus science, faith makes a much stronger impression?

If you were to read kosher laws in the Torah, you will notice there is no explanation for the reason G-d told Jews to keep a kosher diet. Jewish law, as an FYI, is separated in three categories — laws with rational explanations, laws which require rabbinic interpretation and laws that cannot possibly be explained and therefore must go by faith. Kosher laws fall in this third category according to many Jewish scholars. However, even without understanding why, people who choose to keep kosher remain committed, while people at risk of heart attack or diabetes continue to eat as they so choose. Why the difference?

My thinking comes down to two things: G-d and community. If G-d Himself commanded me to keep gluten-free, I’d probably listen. If my whole community decided to go gluten-free with me, I most/more likely would not cheat.

But, wait…

Have you ever seen a rabbi smoke a pack a day? Or, a religious woman overfeed her children artificial candy? I have. And while they are not breaking religious law per se, I’d like to bet they are hurting their physical bodies (G-d-given) which are required for us to be …

It would only make sense for me, the Jewish girl who blogs on Busted Halo, to find two roommates — one Catholic, one a semi-observant Jew — to move in with. The beautiful part about it is my getting new material for the site.

When it was decided the three of us would find a place together, it was no question we would get along. We’re all in the same industry, have mutual friends, same crazy schedules (3 am work hours) and so on. But what happens if one eats bacon and leaves the lard out all over the kitchen table? And the other gets annoyed about having the lights on all night because of Shabbat.

“Would Annie get mad at me if I asked her if she eats bacon?” Farrah asked. “I hate bacon. It makes me throw up. And it’s not just a Jewish thing. I just hate bacon.”

“What do I need to know about Shabbat? I’ve been meaning to ask about that light thing.” Annie says. “I remember in college, the people across the street would ask us to turn the light on for them.”

So here goes some serious Jewish-Catholic dialogue. And by serious, I mean comical and thoughtful dialogue, where we all are forced to understand one another on not just a food and electricity level, but a deeper “This is how I get close to G-d” level.

Annie, my Catholic friend, even thought to maybe check out a church. Who knew, two Jewish girls could inspire a Catholic to go to church. Farrah would even point out the 17 churches along our apartment search path as an FYI, as if they were each exciting new spots for us all to go.

“I totally forgot about the light thing,” Farrah said. “Would it be weird for Annie to have the lights on in the bathroom all Friday night?

“And what about Pesach?” Farrah asks (referring to cleaning out the house for a week of any yeast).

“We will lock her up in her room with a loaf of bread,” I joked.

In the …

In ancient Greece, luck was believed to be a lottery, only awarded to a certain number of people by the gods. In Chinese tradition, however, luck is believed to be governed by our own power. Creating space for luck to enter and travel is how we receive our lot of luck. That is, at least, what my new Feng Shui book says. In Chinese culture, Feng Shui is not looked at as a superstition or religion, but as a science and an art.

When one is ill or has bad luck in life, a Feng Shui  master may enter the home, cleanse the space of bad energy, reorganize furniture, bring in plants and remove items, and it is claimed that the person’s health and luck will change. This is often, in Judaism and Catholicism, something we leave up to prayer. By reorganizing the space where we live, can we also reorganize our life?

I’ve been paying a lot of attention to home décor, style magazines and these reality home makeover shows lately, and am often left in awe at the sight of some of these homes. It is no secret that certain colors, scents, etc. give off a different emotion, energy and vibe. I remember an experiment that proved areas filled with litter and graffiti correlated to more crime, and when those same areas were cleaned up, the crime went down simultaneously. I’m now going to work on an experiment of my own.

Did you know, for example, that there are ways to bring elements into your home that will bring you wealth, romance, children, fame and recognition according to the Chinese? Did you know having the sharp edges of furniture pointed at your bed or seats are considered “poison arrows” and should be positioned otherwise? Or that mirrors reflecting your bed equates to bad health and bad relationships? Or that a fountain or aquarium in your office will bring you wealth? These are just a few of hundreds of techniques the Chinese use to bring luck into their homes.

I find it fascinating, where as Judaism relies …

So, recently, I’ve been trying out this new thing called bubble baths which I hear are great for relaxation. I make a warm bath, get in, and read a good book for about a half hour or so. For the past week, during these baths, I’ve been rereading Eat, Pray, Love (which I had forgotten how G-d heavy the book is). And here it was, after all this time of not praying, author Elizabeth Gilbert reminding me how to begin.

If you’ve never read her book, you must. It’s all about leaving behind the things that do not fulfill us (in her case, her marriage) to discover the things in life that do. And at her lowest points, when she did not know what to do, Elizabeth would cry on her bathroom floor to G-d and He would say to her, “Go back to bed, Liz.” G-d has a plan.

So in this sort of holy soul-searching story, Elizabeth Gilbert seeks to find balance between worldly pleasures and godly presence. She begins to pray in an unusual way. Instead of crying on bathroom floors again, she writes a letter to herself, in a stream of consciousness, to see what writes back.

She writes to herself:

“I need your help.”

And in response she writes, “I’m right here. What can I do for you?”

The letter continues into this self-revelation about her loneliness, and depression, and how despite all that, she is loved unconditionally. It’s just the start to her becoming comfortable communicating with G-d.

I thought, how cool?! So after I got out of my bath, I tried it for myself. I too completely forgot how to communicate with G-d. The letter started out on loose-leaf paper like this…

“Dear G-d. What do I want?”

To my surprise, I wrote back. I wrote, “I want to be happy.”

“And what does Happy mean?”

“I want to live life.”

“And what does living life mean?”

“Well G-d, you see, I just turned 25 — and it’s as if everything and nothing makes sense at the same time. I have someone who loves me, a …

Everyone who knows me, knows I am a huge fan of Sex and the City. Carrie Bradshaw, NYC columnist with her funky outfits, happens to be my role model. And although I love the show, and liked the movie, I thought a sequel would be a bad, if not a suicidal, idea for the name. But once I found out the ladies will be in Abu Dhabi, I was excited to see what four City girls would be doing in what they call the “New” Middle East.

I’m not going to lie. The first half of the movie, with the Middle Eastern-inspired outfits and scenery made me want to take a trip to this paradise hosted somewhere between dry lands, poverty and political warfare. I even laughed when Charlotte used her maiden name afraid her Jewish name might cause trouble there. I thought to myself if I would do the same. But then things made a turn for the worse. Caution: Scene Spoiler. Samantha got arrested for kissing on the beach, then she wore shorts out in the market where religious men snared at her, and then she dropped her purse filled with condoms and then shoved the condoms (and her middle finger) in religious men’s faces. Wow. I knew Samantha was crazy, but that went above and beyond.

I thought how terrible that a light and funny movie would make a mockery of a sacred tradition held by religious men and women. It was interesting, however, to see the HUGE gap between modesty in the Middle East, even in an upcoming cosmopolitan area, compared to New York City – home of the PDA and promiscuous.

I couldn’t help but think this movie was the perfect example of what I’ve been thinking about all along — finding a balance between the two extremes. As I talk to more religious women in Islamic faiths, it’s fascinating to learn more about their struggles of veiling and modesty as well.

The movie ended Caution: Another Scene Spoiler with Muslim women showing the four City ladies the designer …

This week, for the first time ever, I went for a TV audition. Let’s just say it was for a reality show that has something to do with millionaires and love. Why did I go? Despite my camera shyness, I thought it would be an interesting experience, the ya know, let’s see what happens kind of thing. As a journalist, I get curious about basically anything. But reality shows, never (not to be in one at least). In my observation, it wasn’t a day-in-the-life for many of the girls at the audition either with the exception of a few who came with professional headshots.

For this casting, we had to fill out a 26 page application, take photos, and do a quick interview with the casting director. Questions asked were: What are you looking for in a partner? When was your last relationship? Who is your celebrity crush? You might think these are superficial things to ask, but these casting agents weren’t messing around. They were looking for the real deal. They wanted people looking for love. And the more girls (and guys, yes there are millionairesses) I met at the casting, the more I realized they too are looking for the real deal. One girl said, quote: I’m so excited about this. What an amazing way to find the right guy.

I have to admit I was a little surprised to see such a serious-minded crowd, in New York City, at a reality show casting, who are looking for love — and real love nonetheless. Despite the fact I was there out of curiosity, I began to wonder if some of these optimistic and hopeful romantics at the casting could possibly find the love of their life thanks to this show.

What do you think? Can soul mate rendezvous on reality TV be the work of the ultimate matchmaker Himself, or is Hollywood doing a number on our hopes and vulnerabilities? Can true love be found on reality TV?  Tell me what you think and please share your story if you’ve ever been part …

This week is kind of a big deal. From May 18-20th, we celebrate Shavuot (Shah-voo-ote) which is the holiday of when the Israelites received the Torah from G-d on Mount Sinai. It happens to be one of my favorite Jewish holidays because the way to celebrate is by staying up all night, with a ton of people, drinking and studying text.

Last year, I went to the JCC in Manhattan where they had classes all night, plus Israeli dancing, musical performances, Krav Maga lessons (Israeli self-defense) and tons of food and wine. It’s overall a real high energy, exciting time where the City is filled with people walking from one shul to the next at all times of the night.

If you’re at all interested in participating in Shavuot, just do a search for Shavuot in your town. Almost every synagogue and Jewish center is hosting something. You can always host your own Shavuot party and invite people over for an all-night Bible study. Why not? Let me know how it goes.

It’s been several months of one transition to the next — moving, leaving a job, ending a relationship…the list goes on and I’m only 24! It’s easy to be spiritual when it’s easy to be spiritual. When the sun is shining, and everything is aligned in one’s life, of course it’s all G-d. But what about these shaky moments, the ones where all we want to know is that we’ll be ok? I used to be better with change, excited even. And now, I just want to run into a cage somewhere and hide with the bears.

I’ve learned something about myself lately – and that is I am as scared of settling or failure as I am success. What if everything does work out? What if I do get the job of my dreams, end up with my soul mate, spend a life of saving the world and telling stories of strangers I’ve never met? What once sounded like a fantasy could actually come true, and all I want to do now is find a mediocre office job where no one knows my name rather than the world-trotting journalist I dream to be.

So here I am – nervous, anxious, unsure, and I needed some words of wisdom. So while I have tons of books, and shuls, and friends to turn to, I chose Oprah, a modern-day successful and spiritual woman who battles her own self-doubts. Oprah, you have been my spiritual goddess and I want to thank you.

It’s really cool for me, as someone who has spent so much time interviewing people of the Jewish faith, to remove myself and get to know more about other faiths – like Islam.

I recently read a book review for Marnia Lazreg’s Questioning the Veil: Open Letters to Muslim Women making the case for Muslim women to remove their headscarves. I found this fascinating that a Muslim woman would tell others to just stop wearing the veil. As someone who didn’t know much about veiling, or covering, I assumed the veil was a heavy symbol of showing faith in G-d. Marnia has told me this is what many women believe, even those who wear the veil, but it is not. In her research, she attempts to prove the veil is a man-made tradition in order to sustain inequality of man and woman, and that the interpretation of veil is falsely interpreted as a literal veil, and not what its intention is which is to protect oneself, truly meaning “guarding” oneself; not hiding.

I went ahead and asked other Muslim women how they feel about Marnia’s argument. Several women felt strong in their conviction that they are wearing the veil for G-d, others are doing it to make a statement or to take back the veil, a “reveiling,” to show their Muslim pride and identity, and one woman who is not even Muslim has taken on the veil to separate herself from the “Sex obsessed” society which does not allow her to be fully spiritual. I’ve heard such a diverse opinion about this one garment, the headscarf, that it was almost a relief to my understanding that people of the same faith, let alone people of the world, can be aligned on a belief and a religion.

To see other traditions outside of Judaism have such an array and struggle with interpretations of laws, I’m reinforced that there is not one way to be religious, to interpret religion, or to feel religious. The way one dresses, believes, prays, etc. is so personal. Not to mention how …

The other day G-d spoke to me. He came in a form of a coffee vendor, shouting out, “Hey! What kind of coffee do you want?” Looking nice enough, I went over and requested my coffee iced.

We chatted for a bit. I surprisingly didn’t have to rush for once, being early to my destination. He asked to read my palm, his grandmother apparently was a big deal palm reader. He told me I will live a long life — 92 or 93. I will be married, have one son and be a millionaire by the time I’m 35. He also told me I will have some type of kidney problem in a couple of years. I’m not sure if I would be so upset about a kidney problem now, since the rest of my life sounds pretty good.

I have to ask though, who the heck is this guy? And why is he so certain he can tell my future?

I’m not sure I believe in such prophecy, but I’m not sure I don’t either. Part of me is looking forward to seeing if it will come true. I suppose there is something nice about knowing everything will be OK, isn’t there.

Anyway, I wanted to share this story and hear what you think. Is this guy a total crazy or he knows something the rest of us don’t? How much faith can we place on the lines drawn on our palms, or the strangers who read them?

I promised the coffee vendor I’d come back when I’m 35, and a millionaire of course. If all goes according to “planned,” I’ll come back and tell you about it too.