Sunday, November 30, 2008

Schnorring w/ Shelly at the Museum

I was just sitting at home and I was thinking about some of my favorite schnorrer moments. Here is one that I like to talk about. My friend Shelly and I often visit the Metropolitan Museum to see what's new with the pictures. When we go to the museum we wait for someone to come out and ask them if we can have their pin. The Met gives you a pin as verification that you have paid admission. Now my son alwasy asks, "why you do asks for the pin to get in, if it is suggested donation anyway." I tell him "suggested donation or no suggetsted donation; nothing in life is free." It is the art of being a schnorrer, which I would like to mention, an art I have crafted. Plus I like the pins as a souvenier. Well that is my first schnorrer story of many to come. Now is your turn. I am looking forward to reading your Great Shnorrer Stories.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Definition of Schnorrer

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Schnorrer (Yiddish))

For the WWII pilot with a similar name, see Karl Schnörrer.
Schnorrer (also spelled shnorrer) is a Yiddish term meaning "beggar" or "sponger". The word Schnorrer also occurs in German to describe a person, who frequently asks for little things like cigarettes or little sums of money, without offering a return. The English usage of the word denotes a sly chiseller who will get money out of another any way he can, often through an air of entitlement. A schnorrer is distinguished from an ordinary beggar by dint of his boundless chutzpah. The term does not apply to begging or being homeless, but rather a habit of getting things (food, tools) rather than money by politely wanting to borrow them.
The term, which is used in a pejorative or ironic sense, can also be used as a backhanded compliment to someone's perseverance, cleverness, or thrift. For instance, Azriel Hildesheimer, known for his travels around Europe to spread his rabbinical wisdom to the poor, and for his refusal to accept payment for his services, was sometimes referred to as the "international schnorrer" for his reliance on the local community to house and feed him wherever he went. Israel Zangwill best described a schnorrer as a beggar who would chide a donor for not giving enough.