PESACH

Passover went really well this year. Sometimes having no leavening for a week is sheer torture, and sometimes it doesn't bother me at all. This year it was the latter--I can't say I didn't have a single second of wanting a nice, fluffy roll, but it didn't really bother me to substitute something unleavened.

We had a GREAT Seder (Passover dinner). Our friends Naomi and Joseph came over, and although we had a printed-out haggadah that I found online, we tried to do it mostly from memory. Part of this decision was based on the fact that the hagaddah I found online was on chabad.org, and it was a bit...weird. The fourth cup--which is The Cup of Blessing--they had this "blessing" over it that was all "May you pour down your wrath yadda yadda yadda" which the last time I checked was not actually a blessing. Very weird. I've never so much as heard of that bit before. I thought it was just me, but Naomi and Joseph both thought it was really bizarre as well.

Anyway, it was great. I love the fact that when Joseph picked Naomi up at work, he greeted her with, "Well, time to go drink the blood of babies." I almost hate him, because I wish I'd said it.

It was Mike's first Passover, and, being an atheist and all, he was really great about it. I think the fact that there are four glasses of wine, mandatory! helped. And the fact that none of the rest of us are particularly freaky in our religious natures, even though we all believe strongly, also helped.

One thing that I found hilarious is that when we were talking about who was making/bringing what, Naomi said she'd bring kugel--her mother's recipe. I was really polite about it, because, I figure, it's her Passover too, but kugel, in my experience, is this fairly disgusting dry noodle dish full of raisins. (There's also a potato kugel which sounds more appetising, but I've never had it.) It is one of the traditional Passover things, and I will eat it if someone brings it.

Turns out that Naomi's mother is some kind of cooking genius, because it was absolutely delicious. It was kind of like a dense cheesecake. There were no raisins. It was moist. It was yummy. And here I'd been all polite and everything.

So it was wonderful, and it was great to see Naomi and Joseph again, because we live miles and miles apart and don't get to see enough of one another.

It was also nice to have four days after the Seder to nurse my hangover.