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As Madonna landed in Israel ahead of her performance at the Eurovision Song Contest final, Sylvan Adams, the Canadian-Israeli philanthropist who sponsored the $1.3 million tab to bring her, said the headlines and buzz by the megastar’s visit would be worth every penny for Israel’s PR. Every major media outlet had, has, and will cover her every move surrounding her appearance for the biggest song contest in the world.

Napoleon did not have much money when he was ready to propose marriage to soon-to-be-Empress Josephine. He collected all the money he could to purchase his fiancé a beautiful sapphire and diamond ring on a gold band. In a design setting named “you and me,” the sapphire stones are only one carat each yet have a priceless historic value.

I struggled this week to find a way to elevate the annual Met Ball to something other than its theme of “camp,” based on the famous essay by Susan Sontag. Maybe I could find divine merit in Gal Gadot’s Givenchy ensemble of black and white lace with matching thigh high boots and a superwoman cape, but I failed to do so. I tried again with the very modest Gucci gown with sequined dragon shoulder applications reminiscent of HBO’s wildly popular “Game of Thrones.” However, there was not much I could go on except perhaps the inspiration comes from the creation of the taninim as told by Rashi in Bereishis (Genisis).

As a child, my mother started shopping for my Passover wardrobe immediately following Purim. The spree began with excursions to Williamsburg, Boro Park, Union Turnpike, including the beloved and defunct Alexander’s and Ohrbach’s. As a child, I actually despised dressing up, and every trip to the fitting room was a nightmare. I hated the poof, the twirl, and the bows as much as the ruffle ankle socks and patent leather shoes. However, it was an unwritten law that a brand-new wardrobe was a “must” for the Passover season!

The itsy-bitsy yellow polka dot swimsuit just got revised. The yearly swimsuit edition of Sports Illustrated must have gotten a mussar speech on modesty before publication this year. For the first time in its history, the famous swimwear issue has been “covered up.”

This past week, a stolen Picasso was retrieved from the yacht of a Saudi prince. Its origins include the complicated history of stolen art by the Nazi regime. This newsworthy story is just one among many others this month surrounding the subject of confiscated art during World War II.