Since 1906, the Forward has been answering reader dilemmas about daily life in “A Bintel Brief,” Yiddish for a bundle of letters. Send your queries to [email protected], and listen to a podcast version of our signature advice column.
Bintel Brief
The Latest
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Life Joan Nathan Has Some Advice for Forward Readers
Food writer Joan Nathan will be the Forward’s guest Bintel Brief columnist during the month of November. Nathan is the author of numerous cookbooks, including “Jewish Cooking in America” (Knopf, 1994), “Joan Nathan’s Jewish Holiday Cookbook” (Schocken, 2004) and “The New American Cooking” (Knopf, 2005). She has won two James Beard awards and a Julia…
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Life Embracing Your Would-Be Convert, Would-Be Sister-in-Law
Dear Bintel Brief: My boyfriend and his brother come from a family with Jewish values. Their mother has imbued them with the importance of marrying within the faith. My boyfriend’s brother has only been dating a woman for a short period of time, but the woman insists that she is passionate about converting to Judaism….
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Life Be Less Fruitful, and Cut Down Your Carbon Footprint
Dear Bintel Brief: My husband wants to have a big family, but I think that in today’s world with all of the suffering and the need, no one family should have more than two children. As someone who wrote about the stroller capital of the world, who’s right? PONDERING PREGNANCY AND POPULATION Amy Sohn replies:…
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Life How Can I Fire My Flower Girl?
Dear Bintel Brief: My oldest and dearest friend, one of my only friends with children, really wants her daughter to be the flower girl in my forthcoming wedding. Initially, I thought it was a good idea, as neither my husband nor I have young nieces. But now, I’m rethinking the matter: My friend’s daughter is…
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Life Amy Sohn Has Some Advice for Forward Readers
Writer Amy Sohn will be the Forward’s next guest Bintel Brief advice columnist, answering readers’ questions during the month of October. Sohn is the author of, most recently, “Prospect Park West” (Simon & Schuster) — a novel about living, loving, hating and procreating in the leafy Brooklyn neighborhood of Park Slope. She is also the…
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Life Help! I Left My Job; Now I’m Nostalgic for It
Dear Bintel Brief: A few months ago, I decided to leave a very demanding job in television production. I had been there for five years and I was, quite simply, burned out. I felt like I needed a change of pace and direction in my life. Ever since quitting, though, my anxiety about what to…
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Life Help! I Feel Like I’m My Therapist’s Therapist
Dear Bintel Brief: I’ve been seeing my physical therapist for a while now and we’ve grown pretty close. She recently separated from her husband and now, during my appointment, all she talks about are her marital problems and whom she’s dating. Sometimes she’ll get teary eyed while she’s treating me, which makes me feel uncomfortable….
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Life A College Grad: Dependent on Dad, Consumed by Guilt
Dear Bintel Brief: As a recent college graduate, I feel very lucky — particularly in this economic environment — to have landed a job in a creative and very competitive field. I find my work fulfilling in all respects but one: It simply doesn’t pay enough for me to live even a no-frills existence in…
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