(no subject)

[mamadeb]

So, how come LJ gifts doesn't have chocolate covered matzah?

I shouldn't be surprised - if I remember correctly, LJ didn't come out with Chanukah themed gifts until Chanukah was mostly over.

Comments

[magid.livejournal.com]

Because LJ doesn't eat gebrochts?

[mamadeb.livejournal.com]

But...but...chocolate's not water! (Knaidelach! That's a nice, non-religious symbol of Pesach that we can get behind - the non-brokters can pretend they're made of potato starch!)

(Also. I've never had chocolate covered matzah. Nothing to do with gebrokts - it was just one of those things neither my family nor Jonathan's do.)

[magid.livejournal.com]

I've always suspected that the rabbis who started not eating gebrochts had wives/mothers who made knaidlach they didn't like :-)

And chocolate's in liquid form when it gets put around the matza...

(I've never eaten it either, and I do eat gebrochts.)

[geekosaur]

Hm. I thought gebrochts used the Talmud's definition of "liquids that enable impurity". Not that I'd know, since I'm no Lubavitch :)

[magid.livejournal.com]

It may well, but based on what things were like the time I ate somewhere that they didn't eat gebrochts, they don't eat any matza with spreads, either, so minhag has expanded. (Big surprise.)

[malkaesther.livejournal.com]

I've had chocolate covered matzah - its always on sale after pesach is over. Its nothing to write home about.

[pester.livejournal.com]

They're Lubavitch and won't give gebrockts ;)

[otherdeb.livejournal.com]

Probably because none of their Jewish users thought to request that they do so.

Seriously, if it bothers you, why don't you email them about it and see if they respond? In fact, why don't you offer to come up with a set of appropriate gifts they could add for the holidays where gifts are a part of it(I bet no one ever told tham about Purim baskets, for example...)?

I know that a number of our friends would be willing to purchase them were they offered, and you can point that out to the folks at LJ.

[azurelunatic]

Chocolate covered matzah as a vgift got a giggle out of one of the guys, but in all seriousness, I think it's a cool idea and it would be great if someone pitched holiday-appropriate vgifts for the entire calendar, well ahead of the holiday so there would be time for looking them over.

[mamadeb.livejournal.com]

Who do I email?

I can understand not wanting overtly religious symbolism, which is hard for many Jewish holidays - but matzo balls would be fun. So would groggers and hamentashen for Purim, and cheesecakes for Shavuot.

So. Apples and honey for Rosh HaShanah (done the week before, I guess) and...huh. *Everything* is religious for the rest of Tishrei. They have Chanukah covered, and that was cool.

And I'm not about to say what subscribers of other religions should have that isn't overtly religious, but they certainly could.

[azurelunatic]

Pitch it in suggestions. I personally love the idea of having virtual gifts from a whole spectrum of different cultures represented throughout the year. I think you of all people will be able to clearly point out the cultural significance of the gifts you're suggesting and show that it celebrates the major holiday without being overtly religiously symbolic. In any case, a menorah is actually of religious significance (albeit on a more minor holiday), and they do have that for Chanukah.

If you're not comfortable with putting the topic in suggestions (though we do work hard at keeping it unflamed; we've had one spammer/troll, one sarcastic bastard, and one oversensitive angst queen in the past month since I accepted co-maintainership, but the rest has been spirited debate and helpful honing of ideas), e-mail feedback@livejournal.com with the idea.

I know that I would be absolutely thrilled if they had maypoles and baskets of flowers for Beltane. :D

[azurelunatic]

(I brought it up in IRC, one of my co-maintainers giggled, and then there was a huge long discussion of chocolate covered matzah, recipes for same from our dear local foodie, and a delightful digression on lox.)

[cereta.livejournal.com]

I second this recommendation. I think that's exactly the kind of friendly suggestion that helps sites like LJ be more inclusive - which I'm quite sure they want to be, if only we, their users, will help tell them how.

[naomichana.livejournal.com]

*nod* No reason not to suggest it. With dates and all. (Oooh, dates! Tu b'Shvat! No, wait....)

Um, fruit wreaths or some other kind of sukkah decoration for Sukkot? You could also do little scrolls -- or little flags, to make it even less religious -- for Simchat Torah. I agree that a non-religious YK vgift is unlikely, though. :)

[azurelunatic]

And probably make sure that it's Known that these holidays move around from year to year, because it's not the sort of thing that everyone would know.

[beckyzoole.livejournal.com]