For What it’s Worth: Warren Hecht

In a prior column, I had referred to Trump as Trumpty-Dumpty and had my own version of the nursery rhyme. Not surprisingly, the Trumpians were not amused and said so in their Letters to the Editor. This past week, the New York Post, not exactly known as a supporter of Democrats or liberal causes, on the front page, referred to Trumpty-Dumpty and had their own rhyme which was similar to mine.

I read an article titled “West Hempstead Petitions For Woodfield Road Lights.” I thought I was reading one of the Jewish Nassau County papers. Instead, it was the Queens Jewish Link. In another article, Moshe Hill admitted that he is a member of the West Hempstead Republican Club. There is a third writer who also moved to West Hempstead. If this trend continues, we may have to change the name of the paper to the West Hempstead Jewish Link. There has been a lot of discussion involving Goldy Krantz concerning whether to stay in Kew Garden Hills. It would be interesting for the three writers to address the issue of why they left the community. Maybe we can learn from their circumstances how to try to keep others from leaving Kew Gardens Hills.

This past Sunday, I decided to take full advantage of the warm weather by riding by the beach. My favorite beach to ride is by Jones Beach, which has an 18.5-mile bike path. The night before, I looked at the weather and saw that there was a chance of rain, so I chose plan B: Rockaway Beach. For the first time, I decided to ride my bike there instead of putting the bike in the SUV and driving to Howard Beach. In the morning, I saw that Jones Beach cleared up but decided to proceed to Rockway Beach since it would take time to get the car ready.

There are many columns I enjoy writing. This is one I wish I did not have to write. The Five Towns Jewish Times had two front-page articles and The Jewish Home had two articles concerning the sudden death of Dr. Steven Krauss, who died on Shabbos Shuvah. I will not repeat what was stated therein. The articles addressed Dr. Krauss’ life after he moved to the Five Towns. At the funeral, people also talked about how helpful he was to the community, including the shul. I have a different perspective, having grown up with him in Bayside. I had known him since I was 12 years old. He was a year older than me. I will refer to him as Steve instead of Dr. Krauss, since I am sure he would rather have been called that.

One good thing about bicycling is that I can pass by places I infrequently see. New York City is a great place to ride. Every time I ride, I see additional bike lanes or improved bike routes. On Sunday, I rode, among other places, along the Hudson piers and Brooklyn waterfront. It is amazing to see the improvements and construction. Since the last time I was there a few months ago, there is now a new park, a playground, and a sand volleyball court with real sand. So many people were riding Citibikes. For those who grew up in New York during the lean years of the 1970s, no one in their wildest dreams could have imagined such a turnaround. Of course, there were reminders that more work must be done. I saw three dead rats on the bike path. I’d never seen that before. Nevertheless, it is important to remember the tough times of the past before we are so negative about the present.

One of the advantages of a weekly column as opposed to a daily column is that you only have to write once a week. The downside is, by the time the column is published, the situation being addressed can change. When I wrote about COVID two columns ago, I thought that I would have COVID for a few days and then be done with it. It had been almost two weeks and I was still testing positive. Finally, after fourteen days I tested negative. After ten days I was able to go to shul with a mask. However, I needed to continue to isolate for activities that I cannot do with a mask, such as eating and sleeping. The weather has been very comfortable, so I was able to eat outside. I had been sleeping in a small room with a small bed. When I was younger, I could sleep on anything. Age has a funny way of changing people.  It is a great feeling knowing that my incarceration is over. I just hope and pray that I do not suffer any lingering effects from COVID. Unfortunately, I know people who still suffer more than a year later.