Time Warp Tuesday

I've decided to start a new blog "tradition" called "Time Warp Tuesday." I will post old blog entries from MySpace (or possibly even from livejournal if I feel it's appropriate).

My first entry happens to be from this time of year in 2008, as posted to my blog on MySpace. It still rings true today and has to do with my impending Pesach freakout that happens during the month leading up to the holiday. I'm leaving everything in the post because it was relevant during the time I originally posted it. That's what gives it more of a "time warp" feel.

Friday, March 07, 2008
Passover panic and pandemonium

Current mood: angsty
Category: Food and Restaurants

First of all, I want to note how amusing it is that Purim is closer to Easter than Passover is this year. Which means that if the Easter candy is Kosher, we can feast on it without feeling guilty. :) (And yes....all those spring-colored Hershey Kisses and Reese's PB cups are still Kosher.)

I was at Shop-Rite these past two days (I never get everything I need in one trip) and noticed that the Kosher aisle is being converted into a Passover aisle. Passover is only a little over a month away. Still plenty of time to eat chometz (bread and other leavened products) between now and then. I've never seen so much Passover food at one store. When I was living in Illinois, there was maybe a small section at the front of the store with a limited amount of Passover items and not really enough options to choose from. Here, the entire aisle is being devoted to Passover.

Ever since I started keeping Kosher, shopping for Passover has become a huge undertaking. I used to not care as much and would just buy matzah and a few standard items to get me through the week. Even last year, I didn't go overboard, as I knew we were moving soon and spending the first two days in Lancaster. This year, despite the fact that we'll be having another child by the time Purim gets here (b'shaah tovah), my husband has "volunteered" us to host his family for the beginning of Passover. I don't mind hosting a meal normally, but Passover has its own set of rules. Seeing that my brother-in-law keeps Kosher even more strictly than we do, I feel like we should just completely overhaul the kitchen and start fresh. I did tell my husband that if he wants to have Passover here, he's in charge of cooking. Not like he isn't anyway, but I usually do a lot of cooking these days. I will probably contribute some desserts to the meal, but that's all I can fathom doing right now.

In any case, just looking at the Passover items on the store shelves sets me into a tailspin. I know I'll end up procrastinating on Passover shopping as I do every year. I just don't want to think about all that food in my house yet.

The one thing that truly annoys me about Passover shopping is how marketable the holiday has become. It's not enough to just eat matzah and other unleavened bread products, but suddenly nothing is Kosher for Passover unless it's in a Manischewitz or Streit's box that says OU-P on it. And it doesn't just come down to food either. Dish soap apparently has to be Kosher for Passover. I think that's where I draw the line.

I'm hoping Passover won't be a major chore this year. I just want to get through the week and then move on to chometz for the rest of the year. Even the High Holidays don't unnerve me this much!

On a positive note, I am prepared for Purim this year, even though I won't really get to do much for it, all things considered (b'shaah tovah). I just have to fix up E's costume and that's it! (He's wearing his Halloween costume again because his eema is just that lazy. :P )

Sticking with the theme of Judaism here, if you are wondering why I say "b'shaah tovah" a lot, it just means "in due time" and it's my way (as well as the way of the observant Jewish population) of not jinxing the pregnancy.

Follow up: My brother-in-law and his family ended up doing their own thing, so we hosted my mother-in-law and stepfather-in-law. My mother-in-law brought a lot of food from her home, which was nice. I managed to get the shopping done after the baby had arrived and I had time to settle into a schedule with him. We had one seder at our house and went to one at the Rabbi’s house, where E entertained everyone with his “Dayenu” dance. It was a nice and meaningful Pesach overall that year, as well as last year. While I still dread shopping for the holiday, my mother-in-law finds ways to help me feel better about things and get more organized. I’m thankful to her for that!