Dovi’s Digest Volume 290
For a sweet new life 🍯😋🤩
A weekly newsletter for all your intellectual, spiritual, and physical needs
Hello all! Welcome to Volume 290 of Dovi’s Digest!
There are some lovely traditions around getting married in Judaism. For instance, it’s common to get married under your father’s (or grandfather’s) prayer shawl, and for the bride to circle the groom seven times symbolising protection and creation of a new unit. It’s also common that the festivities continue for a full week, where each night, friends and family host a big meal for the new couple, at which many of the same blessings recited at the wedding are said again.
This week, while also being a joyous celebration, also eases the newlyweds into their new life, going from the high of the wedding, and not having the shock of reality hitting immediately.
There is another, lesser-known tradition. Many of you will know that on Rosh Hashana, the Jewish new year, we dip apples in honey to symbolise a sweet new year. But did you know many people also put honey on their bread? Not only for Rosh Hashana, but for the entire High Holyday period.
Newly hitched couples do the same thing, but for their entire first year. Every sabbath or festive meal, instead of salt, they dip their bread in honey - symbolising that their entire life should be sweet, and if there are some rocky patches, they can always go back to basics, and remember that first year.
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In this week’s added extras:
Built by frequent Digest contributor Jeff C, Pair Down, is a daily word puzzle that turns language into a decluttering exercise. You trim away letters to reveal hidden words—and the letters you remove spell something new. It’s for people who love patterns, precision, and the feeling of outsmarting the puzzle by just the right amount.
The most interesting archaeological finds in Antarctica.
A free musical sketchpad that plays whatever you scribble.
If you’re searching for a new hobby…this YouTuber builds hobbit houses by hand, out in nature, with just dogs for company.
Impressive food art
Do you enjoy the Digest? Would you like it to get better? Then please consider sharing it, as the more articles I’m sent, the better it is. It only takes a few seconds, and all you need to do is click here 👇. Thank you!
There was ONE correct answer to last week’s brainteaser. Well done to Jeff C! The answer and this week’s riddle are below.
Keep those articles (and everything else) coming.
Have a great weekend,
Dovi
And now, the articles:
Bread and Honey
Sometimes, marriage is about learning how to braid the bitter with the sweet.
Almost All Languages Appear to Follow Zipf’s Law, And We Have No Idea Why
Even the languages we haven’t deciphered yet, such as the one in the Voynich Manuscript, appear to follow this rule.
There’s Something Missing in Films About Jewish Cultural Figures
Why do films relating to Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan and Robert Oppenheimer barely mention their Jewishness?
Advice From Life’s Greying Edge on Finishing with No Regrets
What A Baby’s First Poo Can Tell You About Their Future Health
Research is unveiling the surprising, lifelong impact of what enters a baby’s gut in the days after birth.
A Year Of Hate: What I Learned When I Went Undercover With The Far Right
Working for Hope Not Hate, I infiltrated an extremist organisation, befriended its members and got to work investigating their political connections.
The Family Who Vanished into the Bush
An abandoned truck appeared on a New Zealand beach. A father and three kids were missing. Then the story got darker—and stranger.
Quote of the Week:
“People think that you have to grow old to become wise. In truth, in old age you have to work hard to become as wise as you were when you were younger.” – Goethe
Word of the Week:
Novercal
no·ver·cal/nəˈvərkəl
Adjective
Of, relating to, or characteristic of a stepmother.
Do you know a word you think others should know about? Submit it here!
Facts of the Week:
Cartoon of the Week:
Tweet of the Week:
Headline of the Week:
Brainteaser of the Week:
There is nothing more embarrassing than realizing you’ve been singing a song lyric wrong for your entire life. In today’s trivia, we’ll give you a popular misheard lyric, and you have to name the song it’s from. For a bonus, write out the correct lyric.
“Wet dream tomato”
“Feel the beat on the tangerine”
“All the lonely Starbucks lovers”
“Saving his life from this warm sausage tea”
“I’m feeling ill like Drake tonight”
“I guess he’s an expert, and I’m more an attorney”
Last week’s brainteaser:
What is the smallest number that can be expressed as the sum of a pair of squares in two different ways?
Hint: It’s less than 100.
Answer:
50. 12 + 72 = 52 + 52