As I reread the article about Rabbi X, I started singing, “If you like piña coladas and gettin’ caught in the rain.”

Tasting the combination of cold, creamy coconut, pineapple, and rum, I thought about Rabbi X being the shonda of the rabbinical community and Israeli society. This married American member of the cloth was convicted of rape by deception by a Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court. He used a fake identity to trick unsuspecting young women into having sex.

Now that’s chutzpah!

Yes, you read that right—a rabbi did such a sinful act.

I wondered, “Did any of these fair maidens even bother to notice the untanned white line circling his left hand ring finger?”

Probably not.

Then I asked, “Does Rabbi X know any of the lyrics to Rupert Holmes’s 1979 Piña Colada song.

 I was tired of my lady
We’d been together too long

like a worn out recording
Of a favorite song

Did the rabbi sing this national anthem of folks seeking extra-marital affairs as he drove to meet his prey?

Then my mind jumped to a question most of my readers have asked themselves at least once in their lives.

If I wanted to cheat on my spouse, what words would I use in my ad?

Readers, don’t you dare to pretend you’ve never had such a thought.

Okay folks, now let’s all pretend we’re a horny American rabbi trying to get some side action in Jerusalem.

What words would you write in your personal column?

For the cost conscious, remember your paying by the word and the line.

Fun-loving, Handsome, Single, White, Ashkenazi Jew in his late twenties seeking a discreet young lady for a lasting relationship with hopes of tying the knot.

I am the proud owner of a set of Giza 45 Egyptian white cotton sheets with strategically placed holes.

I’m a strictly kosher guy when it comes to makin’ love, no kinky stuff.

Let’s party.

Then I wondered, “Did Rabbi X do a Google search to see if there’s a bar in Jerusalem named O’Malleys?”

Probably not.

So you want to know how hot Blake’s TV pilot, “The Totally Mind-Blowing Show” is in India.

Well, the pilot has been selected to be included in its third Indian film festival. This time it’s the Indian Independent Film Festival. (See below)

That makes the show hotter than the black and brown mustard seeds in your curry.

That makes the show more fiery than red chili powder.

That makes TTMBS so hot that it is hotter than ghost peppers and we all know that according to the Guinness Book of Records ghost peppers make the hottest chili in the world.

Thanks, Indian Independent Film Festival for this honor.

And Congrats to Blake and the cast and crew of “The Totally Mind-Blowing Show.”

We received good news a few days ago. The Sittannavasal International Film Festival has selected the Totally Mind Blowing (TTMBS) TV pilot as an award winner. For those who are counting, this is Blake’s second win. Both of our awards come from Indian film festivals.

Flashback on India: I remember that as a hippie in the Sixties reading Siddartha by Hermann Hesse (“Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom.”) was required reading and as I read, I was blown away.

And now I’m reading about the Sittannavasal International Film Festival’s who’s goal is to promote good films from around the world. And having selected TTMBS they certainly know how to promote good films.

When I promote TTMBS, I find one of the joys of writing these blogs is studying the festival site and learning the history and culture of the region.

Here’s a bit of info that Google taught me:

Sittanavasal is a small hamlet in Pudukkottai district of Tamil Nadu, India. It is known for the Sittanavasal Cave, a 2nd-century Jain cave complex. From the 7th to the 9th century A.D., the village flourished as a Jain centre.

The Sittanavasal Cave,is a Jain monastery of the 7th century, small in size, excavated in a bluff on the western slope of the hill in its centre. It is noted for its paintings which have been painted in fresco-secco technique with many mineral colours. The painting themes depict a beautiful lotus pond and flowers, people collecting lotuses from the pond, two dancing figures, lilies, fish, geese, buffaloes and elephants.^[10] Mulk Raj Anand said of the paintings, “Pallava craftsmen used greens and browns and puqiles, with a genuine ability and a lyrical flow of line. Lotuses spring up from imaginary ponds amid variegated greenery, under a bluish sheen.” In addition, inscriptions of the 9th and 10th century are also seen. The exquisite ceiling of the Ardhamandapam is decorated with murals from the 7th century. The cave temple has placid pillars and sculptures of Jain Tirthankaras. However, most of the frescoes which were covered fully in plaster have been severely defaced or not clearly visible due to inadequate security and maintenance resulting in vandalism in the past five or six decades. Originally, the entire cave temple, including the sculptures, was covered with plaster and painted. The paintings are on the theme of Jaina Samavasarana, the “most attractive heavenly pavilion”, referring to the attainment of Nirvana and Khatika bhumi.

Who knew?

As I study this Indian art form, I fall in love with the dancing figure (see above) and her coyish smile, her ankle and wrist bracelets, her ample bosom, her perfectly rounded buns, and her naked back and find this pastel painting as mind-blowing as winning another award and entering a heavenly pavilion in Nirvana.

Now that’s wisdom.