I was forgiven

How about you?

Facts and figures:

:: Finished: 2:30, and back again at 4:30. Shofer was 1 minute late

:: Break fast: Eggs, then soup, then roast chicken.

:: Favorite piyut: Solachti, from the maariv. Perfect words, perfect poetry.

:: Worst moment: Any time the chazan used Carlbach or Deveykus to accompany an 800 year old piyut, instead of the Official, Authentic, Tune (by which I mean the one used by the chazan at my childhood shul, of course.)

:: Best moment: Any time he got it right. By the grace of God, the tunes for Mareh Kohen and Kee Anu Amecha (twice out of 5 times) were spot on. Still waiting and praying for someone to do Labrit Habet correctly. (Wish these melodies had name so that they could be referred to easily.)

:: As an aside, I expect there's a place in hell waiting both for chazonim who depart from the nusach on set pieces like Alenu or the Avoda, and for people who sit and chat during the Neilah slichot. Not because I think God minds or anything, but because some things are sacred, and I mean that in the very best secular sense. You don't spit in the wind, you don't pull on Superman's cape, and you don't act against the decorum of the synagogue at the moment Jews have recognize for thousands of years as being pregnant with overwhelming power.

:: A less painful circle of hell waits for people who read or learn when they should be singing instead.

Ok, your turn.

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