Pen Twirling And Other Things I Can't Do

This morning, I started a chavrusah with OOS who is in for the summer to complete his masters degree. We've agreed to learn for 45 minutes every weekday morning starting at 5:45 a.m. (On Sunday mornings we daven vasikin then ride our bikes, talking Torah the entire 32 miles. Not).

I use the term chavrusah in the loosest sense. Basically, OOS teaches me the gemarah and I sometimes check out a word or two in the Artscroll. But that's ok. While I am essentially hopeless, it's good to see that OOS's $150,000 pre-college education had some good results. (The reality is that only the last $30,000 really had results, but I digress).

But learning is not the only thing I can't do. Much to my dismay, try as I might, I am simply unable to duplicate OOS's "pen twirling".

The pen twirl, of course, is the act of continuously rotating a pen (or pencil) through one's fingers while immersed in a text. This is done effortlessly and without conscious thought.

From time to time I have tried to master this art with absolutely no success. This is annoying as heck since, generally, I am very well coordinated. (My failure to pen spin is right up there with my inability to teach myself to juggle; another skill that OOS has been able to master).

So, I will just have to deal with watching OOS twirl his pen every morning and try not to let it distract me from the main purpose of our morning meetings.