Passover Report

Was planning on cranking about politics, my increasing unhappiness with everything that goes on in this country, from the settlers moving into a building in Hebron, to the disturbing story of a baby who didn't make it past a checkpoint to the hospital without wheezing to death while waiting for his paperwork to be checked, from Katzav receiving a new rape indictment, to the 3 soldiers still missing and not yet returned to their families, to my feeling that peace is so insurmountable, what am I doing here? But, I digress from my real annoyances of the day.

Cleaning, shopping and cooking. Where's all that extra time I anticpated from less yomtov and more hol hamoed? Swallowed up by entertaining - Wed night and Thurs night of last week, preparing for Shabbat with requisite honored guest of my cousin, Barbara, from the US, to more cooking on Saturday night because yomtov was approaching again, to cleaning today because more guests are coming - niece Helaina and an ever-changing cast of her friends, although I turned her down on 2 more friends at the last minute because I just couldn't face the laundry after they leave but did offer to feed them but them seem to have gone elsewhere, and cousin Rachel Brodie with husband, Adam Weisberg and 2 girls but they'll be with friends tomorrow so main cooking is for tonight but stillllll.....that meant food - yes, I'm sure you all want to know. Truth is I cooked with what I had on hand last night and this morning, although Ira did make a run to the shuk to replenish empty stores - no one should go hungry and is at the makolet/bodega right now getting eggs and milk and whatever else we still forgot.

Cooked with celery, carrots, fennel, onions/garlic, potatoes, sweet pots and turnips. First a nice soup, then sauteed veggies with quinoa, fresh salmon casserole with veggies and pear/apple crisp for dessert. That does not include cookies from the freezer that I saved for 2nd yomtov and the stuffed veggies that we'll do now - little dumpling zucchini's and peppers with quinoa and RICE (yes, we're offering rice to those infidels that will eat it on Pesach). Ira picked up, big excitement, negev truffles at the shuk - 150nis a kilo and he bought a quarter of a kilo and tomorrow will make truffle matza brie or truffle omelets or truffle something - must check the recent article in Ha'aretz about truffle ideas and preparation for local truffles. Who'd thunk it? And, hey, more affordable than in America where I've never bought them.

I'm not complaining enouph. I sound like I'm enjoying it. Well, it is Gabe's b-day but he's gone. Fourteen years old. Not even a Bar Mitzvah boy anymore. He went to Aunt Sarah for yomtov - for the purpose of playing basketball with Noam. That's good.

Hag Sameach.