Is It Good For The Jews?

All is lightness and levity in the Twilight Lounge tonight as the boys skirt the day’s heavy issues in favor of tales of Rosen’s insane dog, Goldbrener’s run-in with a territorial paramilitary picnicker, the meaning of Tisha B’ av and what can happen when a bunch of Boy Scouts, armed with dreidels, band together to … Continue reading Episode #148: Dreidels, Jewish pirates, Monsanto. →

Goldbrener isn’t buying his partner’s antipathy toward the Sidewalk Chalk Heart Guy, no matter how persuasive the argument that the whimsical drawings are, in fact, vandalism, but he’s completely on board when it comes to choosing people over coyotes. As for the Cal State University System, stepping in at SF State is the least they … Continue reading Episode #147: Zuck v. Musk, empty resolutions, Sidewalk Heart Guy →

This week in the Twilight Lounge: is there such a thing as homeless Jews, or are they just play-acting? What does Eric’s bow tie-wearing friend really know about the Iranian revolution? Does everyone in Montana carry a firearm? Is alt-right gadfly Andrew Anglin a coward? And… Is Radiohead good for the Jews? Of course they are. … Continue reading Episode #146: Radiohead redux; Hollywood Jews →

It is a triumphant Rosen and a fired-up Goldbrener that meet up in the Twilight Lounge this week to discuss the value of doing chores, especially the kind that save your $80 per month on cable while adding two new movie channels, and to hint at a recent Facebook feud between Goldbrener and a pro-tax … Continue reading Episode #145: Going after Jay-Z; cable upgrade →

Rosen and Goldbrener convene a day late to welcome a flood of new followers in the U.K., then dive into a typically spirited show featuring mea culpas, mostly factual instructions on how to properly dispose of an American flag, torah hijinks, Omri Casspi, Goldbrener’s Uber driver, England’s problems with anti-semitism and Jared Kushner’s uneventful trip … Continue reading Episode #144: Welcome, U.K. followers! →

This week there are buskers on BART, terribly misguided lesbians in Chicago, an Israeli NASCAR driver and a non-Jewish Israeli drafted into the NBA. How will Rosen and Goldbrener process all of this? Will it require a short discussion of  Hugh Everett’s many-worlds interpretation of quantum physics? Maybe. Will Goldbrener get riled? Yes. Will Rosen … Continue reading Episode #143: Political rabbis, buskers →

Join us in the Twilight Lounge for an evening of high and low culture, unseen hand-waving, in-depth discussions of the value of art versus commerce, the meaning of the word “career” and Rosen’s ill-advised flirtation with the music of the Grateful Dead. Is he being driven crazy by the heat or has Goldbrener’s circuitous debate … Continue reading Episode #142: “Kushner redux, art vs. commerce.” →

After a month-long hiatus, the Twilight Lounge is once again open for business. Episode #141 finds the boys ruminating on Rosen’s run-ins with angry Swiss policemen and The Most Interesting Overweight Man in France, then pivoting onto more serious topics like Jeremy Corbyn and the world’s exhaustion with the Jewish experience. Finally, after touching on … Continue reading Episode #141: “Wonder Woman, Swiss Cops, Corbyn.” →

A week away finds the boys brimming with energy, which Rosen unfortunately uses as fuel for his latest San Francisco rant, which eventually veers into crackpot territory. Fortunately, Goldbrener has his back, creating a safe space that allows Rosen to present his next conundrum: well-meaning but anti-semitic landlords. Next up: an attempt to pump up Lag B’Omer, a … Continue reading Episode #140: “Neil Diamond, Rosen rants.” →

On May Day, a walking intersectionality poster child (complete with crisp new “Free Palestine” t-shirt) sends the boys spinning off into an hour-long exploration of  hot button issues that includes Dr. Goldbrener’s comprehensive history of the Middle East and Rosen’s supposing that DJT might be “crazy like a fox,” plus a focus on why San Francisco’s Yom … Continue reading Episode #139: Hamas’ change of heart? →

A chastened Rosen enters the Twilight Lounge with a tale of his latest brush with the law — in this case “the law” being an elderly North Beach shopkeeper who wrongly accused him of stealing a bottle of water. Goldbrener has his back, though, leaving both of the boys free to tackle issues of anti-semitism among … Continue reading Episode #138: “DJT on our side; Rosen is accused.” →

Passover and taxes are on our minds this week following an unscheduled break to soothe our IRS- and pesach-generated woes. Whether it’s hidden fees and the, “Surprise! You pay now!” essence of quarterly estimates or the challenges of Goldbrener’s seder responsibilities/Rosen’s inability to get invited to dinner that has us down, one thing we can agree on is … Continue reading Episode #137: “Gluten-free matzo-style squares.” →

Another week-long break has the boys fired up and ready to lay down strong opinions on the state of America, our loss of optimism and the glories of traveling solo, before segueing into a saddened (Rosen) and wise (Goldbrener) exploration of Women’s March co-founder Linda Sarsour’s confounding hypocrisy. Finally, after celebrating a new Jew, they … Continue reading Episode #136: “Progressive Passover, Zionism v. Feminism” →

Rosen has returned from Utah, where he was the “other” kind of Zionist. Goldbrener eschews all manner of exercise. Frank Zappa is discussed, as is the eerie connection between avant garde music and the Antelope Valley. Rosen complains about 24-Hour Fitness (for a change) and animal rights activists’ Purim protests, then celebrates Team Israel and … Continue reading Episode #135: “Israel travel ban; Berkeley Jews; Radiohead.” →

We begin tonight with a series of rants followed by a lesson in urban civics before delving into the deeper meanings of Purim and the Purim events — some including beatboxing! — scheduled for this year, followed by ever-increasing bomb threats: what do they actually mean? and some unabashedly positive flag-waving for the Israeli baseball … Continue reading Episode #134: “Purim, Israeli baseball, socialists.” →

Goldbrener’s in his “relaxing threads” (not to be confused with his “Mexican Lounging Suit” and Rosen’s wearing new shoes, putting the boys in a relaxed mood; all the better to tackle the big issues of the day: DJT’s first address to a (barely listening) congress, Warren Beatty and the Oscars snafu, IKEA catalog problems and … Continue reading Episode #133: “Holocaust tourism; 100 bomb threats.” →

Rosen’s in a bad mood, but don’t let that stop you from joining the boys as they tackle the important issues of the day. This week, after they wade through psychosomatic illnesses and the root causes of local transit failure, they discuss the results of a Pew Research Report measuring “warmth” toward (or from?) Jews, then … Continue reading Episode #132: “Warm Jews; one-state solution.” →

Knit caps are the rule in the Twilight Lounge, and Rosen’s new spiralizer isn’t the pasta replacement he’d hoped for, but the frittata is his crowning achievement. In other news, the boys are unclear on Canadian border restrictions and Julian Edelman has made us all proud, Kimmel can’t bluff and Goldbrener has never heard of … Continue reading Episode #131: “Kippah restrictions; spiralizer.” →

Fueled by burritos, the boys settle into the Twilight Lounge to speak of automotive break-ins, hippie mints, far-flung western wear stores, Y & T and jugglers who set up shop in crosswalks before segueing to Texan mensches, probable cause in cases of arson and, finally, encouraging tales of female Palestinian race car drivers. On to … Continue reading Episode #130: “Holocaust omission; female Palestinian race car drivers.” →

World got you down? Step into the Twilight Lounge, where the boys are going to great lengths this week to avoid political and/or soul-crushing topics. Body- and morale-crushing topics, including Rosen’s unfortunate failings with his personal trainer, however, are wide open. So are disturbing stories about Goldbrener working at Round Table Pizza and Rosen avoiding hepatitis. … Continue reading Episode #129: “Jewish Americana music.” →