On my "fridzhider" (refrigerator) is a magnet which reads:

                  MEZUZAH DOCTOR
                  Moshe Gantz
                  71-18 169th St.
                  Flushing, New York

Halacha requires you to check your mezuzot
every 3 1/2 years, according to Gantz.  He
sells, inspects, repairs, and installs mezuzahs.

In Yiddish, "posl" means "void" or "invalid."

Mezuzah stories have made the news for
many years.  Newsday, Oct. 31, 2009, carried
the following headline:

  CONDO COMPLEX RELENTS,
  AGREES TO ALLOW MEZUZAHS.

Yes, a Jewish woman from Dix Hills, Long
Island, said that her condominium complex
discriminated against her by stopping her
from displaying a 4-inch mezuzah on her
front "tir" (door).  State Attorney General,
Andrew Cuomo, investigated after receiving
a complaint that residents were told to
"either take down their mezuzahs or purchase a screen door costing between
$300 to $500 to conceal ("oysbahaltn")
the object."

Mezuzahs are placed on the doorposts of
the Jewish "heym"--both at the entrance
and inside doors except for bathrooms--to
remind all who enter that "the joyous values and traditions of Judaism should be
lived in the home."

In an e-mail to Rabbi Goldie Milgram, I
asked her whether a mezzah is hung on a
computer, a boat, or a car.  She replied,
"There is no requirement in Jewish law to
hang a mezuzzah on a moving vehicle;
since some of us spend so much time in such vehicles adaptations have evolved
which look like mezuzzahs but contain the
prayer for travel.  What one puts on one's
computer as a portal is certainly content-
wise personal choice."

Here are some interesting stories about
mezuzzahs:

1.  Many years ago when Moshe was a
     young boy, he found a mezuzah on the
     wall of a deserted house near his street.
     As there was still time before he had to
     get home for his tea, he pulled it off the
     wall and opened it.  Inside, he found a
     piece of old paper on which was written
     the words that he would never forget:
     "Please help me.  I'm being held prisoner
     in a mezuzah factory."
          (Source:  "Oy!  The Ultimate Book
          of Jewish Jokes" by David Minkoff)

2.  Mr. Weinstein toils his entire life until
     he finally builds the "heym" of his
     dreams:  a mansion with rooms galore
     and doors made from the finest woods
     everywhere.

     He hired an "arbeter" (worker) to
     attach the 30 mezuzahs he needs and
     carefully instructs him, "Place these
     mezuzahs very carefully.  Don't scratch
     the fine wood and make certain they are
     all at the same perfect angle."

     He comes back a few hours later and
     inspects the work and is so "gliklekh"
     (happy) at the compulsive perfection
     of the workman that he says, "You have
     done a great job.  I am going to give you
     10 percent more than I said I would pay
     you!"

     The workman replies, "A dank, Mr.
     Weinstein, and by the way, I put all the
     warranties on the kitchen table!"

3.  Story:  "The Child Who Couldn't Talk
     Little Yossi was a sweet and cute-looking
     infant.  Yet, when more than two years
     had passed and the child still hadn't
     learned how to talk, the parents decided
     to take him to their pediatrician.  After a
     thorough checkup, the doctor could not
     find anything wrong and assured the
     parents that the child would soon begin
     to speak.  As more than another year
     passed, and still there was no progress,
     they became very concerned and decided
     to consult a specialist.  After a complete
     checkup and many tests, the specialist
     was also unable to find the cause of the
     problem.  Six more months passed, yet
     the child didn't utter a single word.  All
     day his mother would hold him in her
     arms, smile at him, and make all sorts of
     sounds, in the hope that he would
     thereby imitate her.  Yet not a sound
     came out of his mouth.  The parents
     were panicking and becoming more
     desperate from day to day.

     One night, the father went to his Rebbe
     and poured out his heart.  It was filled
     with fear and worry.  The Rebbe advised
     him to have his Mezuzos checked at
     once.  The very next day he took off all
     his Mezuzos and brought them to an
     expert sofer...(The Mezuzah was "posl"--
     void or invalid.)  Yossi's father
     immediately ran to buy a good Mezuzah
     and put it on the door.  Imagine his
     joy, when two days later his son began
     to talk.  Just a coincidence, you say?
            Permission to use this material
            was granted by David Teitelbaum

4.  Rabbi David Shiinborsky, an expert sofer,
     tells this story:  "When I rented my
     second-floor office on 13th Avenue and
     48th St. I had a robbery the very first
     Shabbos.  I immediately put in an alarm
     system, gates on the windows and, of
     course--being a sofer--I also checked
     the Mezuzos but found nothing wrong.
     The previous owners told me that they
     had also had a series of robberies at the
     store  Unfortunately, the next week my
     office was broken into again, and this
     time the thieves even broke the alarm
     box.  I then realized that in my haste to
     check the Mezuzos I had forgotten to
     check the very outside door.  Sure
     enough, when I now checked that one I
     found it was posul.  I replaced it at
     once.  Boruch Hashem, more than a year
     has passed, and we've had no more
     break-ins."
            Permission to share this piece
            was given by David Teitelbaum

5.  The Return of Their Dead Son
     Several years ago young Ronnie H. was
     wooed away from his ancestral heritage
     by a notoriously evil-spirited cult.
     Naturally, Ronnie's parents sought every
     possible means to rescue their son.
     Thanks to the daring and dedication of a
     young Rabbi,  Ronnie was eventually
     rescued.

     During Ronnie's subsequent period of
     detoxification, his parents traveled to
     Israel, where they sought the advice of a
     Kabbalist, Rabbi Elazar Abuchatzeira.
     The revered Rabbi told them that, upon
     returning home, they should check their
     front door Mezuzah.  The Mezuzah
     proved to be defective in the first line of
     the Sh'ma, which read, "Sh'ma Yisroel...
     Hashem Echad (One)."  The top right
     part of the  daled had been broken off
     and appeared as the letter resh.  Thus
     the word Echad (One) read ocher
     meaning "other", i.e., another god.  Not
     long after replacing the invaid Mezuzah,
     Ronnie became his old self again.  He
     returned to his heritage and yeshiva
     studies, and today lives a religious
     Jewish life.
        Story told with the permission of
        David Teitelbaum.