Rain beshert

Beshert | Dancing in the Rain

For years before we met, Ellen and I had assumed that a miracle relationship was out of our grasps. I had given up because I thought that my age would deter potential partners. I am 76 years old. At 65, Ellen was going through the trials of computer dating.  On April 10th of this year, Ellen asked our mutual friend, Robin, for my number. They’d been discussing Ellen’s online luck. Robin had offered to put Ellen in touch with me since in the past I’d met some nice women online. Ellen told her, "I don't want to talk to her about dating, I want to ask her out."   We FaceTimed that night. It was a totally sweet virtual encounter—lots of laughing and a comfort level I have rarely experienced. Then we FaceTimed for 37 days, 260...

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Larry Miller and his beshert in 2020 and 2008

Beshert | Sitting in the Nosebleed Section

It was February 1, 1993. I had just finished shooting a video in Israel for a corporate client. I was an American living in London, separated and waiting for my divorce to come through. So, with no reason to rush back home, I headed down to Eilat for a little sun and sand. I wandered the beaches alone, a solitary figure framed against the shadows of the setting sun. For three lonely days, I spoke to no one and then it was time to head to the airport. As I was checking in, I saw two beautiful English women just ahead of me, and we shared a few small-talk words. After they’d checked in, I asked the ticket clerk if she could seat me next to them, but she said the closest available seat was two rows ahead and three rows...

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Beshert | A Mensch with an Edge

We met through a friend on July 4th, 1996. My friend Sheryl asked me to fireworks; her friend Cliff was saving spaces at Gasworks Park, a hilly green space abutting Seattle’s Lake Union that featured old-fashioned gasworks. Saving spaces there on July 4th is a commitment and a half. The show doesn’t start until 10:15 pm.; to snag a premium spot, Seattleites line up at eight in the morning.  Sheryl said, “You and Cliff might really get along.”  At that point in my life, I pined over whichever guy in the corner of whichever party had long hair, a joint between his lips, and “I will ruin your life,” written all over him. I couldn’t have recognized beshert if it crawled out of Lake Union and bit me on the tusch—especially with the kind of mensch who would...

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"I'm an Israeli Spy": Best Pickup Line Ever? Best Pickup Line Ever.

Guys, a tip: If you're married but, you know, flexible, and you embark on an affair with a younger co-worker who then decides that your 176 text messages and 23 emails over a 16-hour period are, you know, creepy, she might ask for a transfer overseas. If she does this, the only way (repeat: the only way) to get her back is to fly to her new home in London, bearing a box of Cuban cigars and bottles of whiskey for her father (because you are, after all, thoughtful), and, when stopped, say that you are an Israeli spy. Trust us: this plan has never failed. --Sala Levin

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“I’m an Israeli Spy”: Best Pickup Line Ever? Best Pickup Line Ever.

Guys, a tip: If you're married but, you know, flexible, and you embark on an affair with a younger co-worker who then decides that your 176 text messages and 23 emails over a 16-hour period are, you know, creepy, she might ask for a transfer overseas. If she does this, the only way (repeat: the only way) to get her back is to fly to her new home in London, bearing a box of Cuban cigars and bottles of whiskey for her father (because you are, after all, thoughtful), and, when stopped, say that you are an Israeli spy. Trust us: this plan has never failed. --Sala Levin

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