Goldie's Stories - Episode 4

This week we are reading a story about the Rebbe Maharash, the fourth Lubavitcher Rebbe. Although he was known as the Baal Shemske Rebbe because so many miracles occurred when he was Rebbe this story shows the power of belief to cause a transformation.



For those who are interested in more from the behind the scenes I usually read through some of the dozens of story books that I have in our house (many of them collections of stories) to find ones that seem right for the time (season/calendar wise) and length. One story I had considered I realized was too long, and I didn't feel up to rewriting the story. I decided that the bagel story would be a good one, but I couldn't find the book I had read it from. So, while I am reading the story, what I am reading is my writing of the story as I remember it.

Goldie's Stories - Episode 3

This week's story is a story about Rabbi Akiva and his wife Rachel. When Rachel met Rabbi Akiva, then a shepherd in her father's employ, he was illiterate. But she saw wisdom in him and agreed to marry him if he would go to learn Torah...which of course first meant learning to read. The long story short - he became a great sage and his teachings are still taught and studied today. But this story, based on Midrash HaGadol, takes place earlier in the story.

This story can be found in the book No Greater Treasure: Stories of Extraordinary Women Drawn from the Talmud and Midrash.

Goldie's Stories - Episode 2

This Thursday will be the 18th of the month Elul, which is the anniversary of the Baal Shem Tov's birthday. In honor of this, this week I read two Baal Shem Tov stories from the book "Extrodinary Chassidic Tales"

Thin Air Summit - Speakers and Registration

I know my blogging about the Thin Air Summit, the New Media Conference in Colorado (Nov 7-9), has been a bit sparse here. In our Web2.0 and New Media discussions on the web one of the mantras that runs through them both is "try something beyond what you've done before." With the Thin Air Summit I've been doing just that, and it has been a little scary, and thus the blogging sparseness. Luckily I have an excellent team working on this with me and it has really come together. I am really looking forward to the event.

To tell you a bit more about the conference (and to quote our website):

We are offering hands-on learning sessions and discussion panels presented by nationally-recognized and local New Media professionals. The size of the Summit is limited to 100 attendees, ensuring an intimate, intensive weekend of collaboration, education and community.

We have our Keynote Speakers, Dave Taylor and Jerimiah Owyang. Right now we are working on finalizing our speaker and panel line up and we are still accepting speaking proposals until September 18.

If you speak on new media, specifically blogging, video or audio and would like to present, I'd love to have you submit a proposal to present.

Proposals will be reviewed by the planning committee and speakers will be selected based on their knowledge level, experience presenting in a 'learning' environment and the relevance of their proposed topic to the conference theme. This is our first year, so we're on a shoestring budget, but the experience we're planning to create should be well worth your time.

You can submit your proposals at: http://www.thinairsummit.com/presenting/

We will be opening registration shortly and I will post an update here (as well as twittering about it.)

Goldie's Stories - Episode 1

At the last Denver Area Podcaster's meetup Len Edgerly spoke on his Kindle Chronicles podcast and gave six lessons on podcasting. One of his points of advice was to start before you know what you want to podcast on, and when your subject finds you, you will already be ready. He also told a story about a poet, William Stafford, who advised his students to write a poem a day. When one complained that he couldn't do that the teacher told his student "Lower your standards."

So in that spirit, I have started a podcast now rather than waiting for all pieces to come together, knowing that it will improve as I continue.

Without further ado - Here is "Goldie's Stories with Goldie Katsu - Episode 1"