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Ptgt 8 THE SOUTHERN ISRAELITE February 9, 1979
Time on
his hands
Jam* I drlkind: “When I make a mistake...*'". okay...l fist Stan over*
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by Faith Powell
Every half hour, the clocks
chime in the Edelkind home.
Grandfather docks, wall clocks,
old and new clocks are everywhere.
Why so many? “It’s a hobby for me
and my mother,** Jamie Edelkind
said. Pointing to a beautiful shelf
clock, he added, “This is one of the
fust ones we got. It was built in the
1700s, the first Westminister they
made.**
Having so many clocks can be
very expensive. Simple repairs can
cost $75 to $ 100. So, two and a half
years ago, when Jamie was
thirteen, he had an idea.
“When a clock broke, I told my
parents ‘Let me try to fix it.* I
figured that if I couldn’t, 1 would
pay for any damage I did. 1 didn’t
take it completely apart because I
wasn’t so sure of myself. I had no
tools or books, but I tried to see
what it should be doing. I fixed it
and I’ve been hooked ever since."
Once he was sure he understood
the complicated inner-workings of
clocks, Jamie took the next step—
to try and find a shop that would
hire him for a few hours a week
after school.
He laughed, “One place I went
into, the man asked me how long it
would take me to take apart a
clock and put it back together
just the way that I found it. I told
him less than half an hour. The
man said, ‘Impossible."*
Impossible? For some people,
yes, but not for Jamie Edelkind.
He now works part-time for . a
jeweler, repairing watches and
jewelry. In his ‘spare time’ Jamie
takes out an antique box, with over
$2,000 in specialized tools inside
and repairs more time pieces in his
garage/workshop. He has a special
love for old clocks.
Still he has time for an active
role in Young Judaea, his fish
tank, running and, of course, his
schoolwork.
Although it would seem that
Jamie has a solid future in the
“time" business, he has other plans
for himself.
“The repair work is relaxing, but
not really creative. I want to study
chemistry and physics at Emory,”
he said with conviction. “I like
research—that’s exciting.”
When Jamie hands in a
chemistry test at Lakeside High
School, all he has on the paper are
the answers. “I do all the work in
my head," he said.
And if he has a wrong answer?
“My teachers always ask me to
explain my reasoning, just in case 1
saw an angle differently, but
maybe not incorrectly."
How does an analytical mind, a
mind that goes like “clockwork"
feel about something as intangible
and ‘unscientific’ as religion?
Jamie, a member of Congregation
Shearith Israel, feels very
comfortable with his Judaism. “L
*S
keep Kosher and don’t eat out of
the house, my morals agree with
the teachings. Oh. there are
some things I *don’t agree
with...and I’m not afraid to say
so.”
What is it about this talented
young man that allows him to
understand complicated gears and
modern formulas?
His concentration is intense and
his patience in solving problems,
endless. Jigsaw puzzles, one of his
other hobbies, are a good example.
“Most people have to sit down and
just get done with it. Not me. I like
to really see how the pieces fit,
sometimes, they really fly
together."
Clock repair came as a natural
extension of his love for puzzles
and mathematical problems. It is
cold in his workshop during the
winter, but with his careful
attention to his clocks and watches
he gets so wrapped up he doesn't
really notice. “Keeping busy, that’s
the only way I can stand it out
there.”
His family, his mother and
father and nine brothers and
sisters, are proud but not so
surprised. When he fixed that first
clock he said to his father, “Look,
it works!" His father said, “Of,
course!”
His boss is not always that
confident. “He comes to me and
asks, ‘Think you can do this,
Jamie?’” Usually Jamie can.
“Sometimes he doesn’t believe I
can, but it's a good feeling to
succeed.”
At 15, Jamie is involved in a
highly skilled trade, familiar with
the terms, tools and techniques
needed to be a success. His work
shows the care and the pride he has
in his work. He is not easily
discouraged nor does he do things
half way. He said, “When I make a
mistake, or can’t figure something
out, it’s okay, I just start over and
try something different and see
what happens."
Part of Jamie's secret is his
attitude. He is interested in “living,
not in just existing."
But, like anyone else, there are
those things he doesn't like-
impatience, self-defeatist attitudes,
ignorance and chewing gum.
Two Concurrent Exhibits - Feb. 11 - March 7, 1979:
Images of Polish Jewry: Arts & Culture
prepared by the Yivo Institute for Jewish Research
Judaica from Private Atlanta Collections
at the
Atlanta Historical Society
3099 Andrews Dr. N.W.
Joseph and Dora Hirszowicz, with thier eleven children and
daughter-in-law. Warsaw, 1904.
Sponsored by the Atlanta Jewish Federation & the Atlanta Historical
Society. For further information call Ellen Rosenberg, 873-1661.
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