This year was fun with the advent of Thanksgivikuh.
A strange convergence of the Jewish lunar calendar and the United States' holiday calendar that we have never seen in our lifetimes brought the start of Hannukah, the Jewish eight-day festival of lights celebrating an ancient military victory over the Philistines, on the same day as Thanksgiving, the American celebration of its own obsesity of family, thankfulness and reflection.
Thanksgiving came and went and likely all your leftovers are gone. Hannukah carried forward. Latkes were cooked, candles were lit and socks were given out as presents (that is just what we do).
Hannukah finished Thursday with the lighting of the final candle and the end of the celebration. There is now an unfillable gap in the Jewish Holiday calendar — I mean, the Fast of the 10th of Tevet coming up on Thursday is just not exciting.
Omri Casspi, one of two Israeli players in the NBA, got to celebrate the final night of Hannukah in a very special manner. The Rockets forward and his mother were invited to the White House to light the final candle and celebrate the end of this joyous festival. Comcast SportsNet Houston followed along:
Casspi already struggled with the American classic Hannukah song "I Had a Little Dreidel" but he also shared some photos on Instagram of the trip he and his mom took.
Casspi apparently promised the President he would not dunk on him in his brief meet and greet with Mr. Obama during the reception.
Now, if he can get President Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the same room for such a reception without yelling each other, that would have been a true Hannukah miracle.
