We’re back with another episode, discussing the joys and curiosities of life after leaving ultra-orthodox Judaism. In this episode we catch up with each other (and with you!) about where we’ve been since our last episode aired. We take you through hospital delivery rooms, Sukahs attached to walls, jellyfish in the Guinness beer plant, and the cuddliest, sweetest step Sol took in his After Life journey.
For the occasion of Lipa’s groundbreaking new album Sol comes down from the ivory tower where he’s been teaching chemistry and Ushy takes a break from his lab at an undisclosed location near the US capitol, to discuss this momentous event. Can Ushy and Sol live with the knowledge that Lipa is now going to college and so they are not special anymore? Does Ushy even know what kind of music this new album is? Tune in to hear us discuss how, despite our qualms, Lipa still provides some of the best s...
Even if you sell your Olam Habbah we still welcome you in the After Life. Ari Mandel, aka Rachmuna Litzlon, joins us in this episode for an interview packed with insightful anecdotes of his very active life on the internet’s OTD groups, the story behind his activism, and juicy details about his notorious pranks. Ari’s avatar (a hasidic sparta) and pseudonym (Rachmuna Litzlon) are amongst the most consistant personalities in Facebook’s many OTD groups, he is the admin of many groups and is very a...
In the After Life it can be a bit confusing about how far back you really want to look. In this episode, as we reflect on our episodes so far, we discuss what it takes to talk about your life before, the responses we often get, and the criticism we sometimes ignore. We wonder aloud how ex-Hareidi writing has changed over the years, who can still be anonymous, and which type of stories really “get us”. We both share some of the projects we’ve been working on and what the responses in each case, i...
Happy Passover! They may have knocked our teeth out, but we, the wicked sons and daughters of the Haggadah who questioned all the rituals, still question who we are today. In this episode we discuss the role of Jewish identity in our new lives. Joined by a guest that makes us all seem smarter we discuss what it is to be Jewish when we gave up on the first definition we had. We share how we like to celebrate our holidays these days, what we tell people when they ask us about our jewishness, and w...
In this episode we continue to discuss the je ne sais quoi of Hasidic Music. We discuss blatant parodies of Secular music by Hasidic artists, Kol B’isha, Zemiros, and our favorite songs. Find out what the Protestant Reformation can teach us about how Chasidim feel about music, how Artscroll made erotica into a buzz kill, and what Yiddish song has an intro from a famous Broadway musical. This is also the episode where we coin the term “particle Jew” (you can thank us later.)
“But I still love the music…”. If you have ever spoken to anyone in the After Life, you are sure to have heard this sentiment over and over. In this first part of a two-part discussion on Chassidic music, we explore what it is about this music that makes us godless porcine enthusiasts still long for the tunes of MBD. We examine what makes a Chassidic popstar, what Tim Tebow has to do with the Holocaust, and why we don’t want any of our uncircumcised friends to ever ask us what the lyrics to the ...
Now that the ball of life is in our court we sometimes like to sit back with a few beers and watch others kick it around. In this episode, recorded in the pre-super bowl era before God started loving his Dodge Ram, we sit down to discuss the world of sports and athletics that our new life has opened for us. Joined by special guest Shmuly Horowitz, co-founder of the Footsteps Basketball Program, we discuss why the Yankees are the most Hasidic team, how we discovered the sports we love and the one...
It’s back to school in the After Life and we feel as ready to take off as a Boeing 787 , still we strap our seatbelts and take you along for the ride. In this episode, we discuss the Yeshiva learning skills that help or hinder us in our pursuit of secular higher education, why chemistry students don’t know how to create a Kol Torah , a good rule of thumb to know if your professor is talking about something you studied in Yeshiva, and what Amsterdam can teach us about choosing study partners....
We may no longer feel at home at Chasidic houses but the After Life can feel like a no man’s land. In this episode of The After Life we explore the architectural signatures of Chasidic life, why all shuls smell the same, the most complicated way to sweeten your coffee, and why it’s easier to find a restroom in a non-Chasidic community.
They may not serve beer in hell, but the After Life is full of new foods with complicated names to confuse even for the most avid shopper at Pomegranate. In this episode we reflect on the experiences we had with food since we made our last blessing, all the money we saved with the dollar menu, and why convenience is a dish best served cold and often.
