Let there be light

Before the fun at the first seder, read the post below, we had some fun at home. On shabbat, in our dining room, the light bulb decided to suddenly burn out. I live in the basement and have an air conditioner blocking most of the window so even in the middle of the day having no light is a problem. We use oil and it was still burning during the second meal so we had some light. For the first seder we went to shul, the second seder, however, was going to be a problem.

Around half a year ago, one of the bulbs for the oil got broken. I tried looking in all of the seforim stores in the neighborhood but they were only selling tiny bulbs and the big ones that we use were only available a month before Chanuka. In one store, I was recommended to use the cup for neriot. Now these things are small, ugly and way too thick, so no way. I looked around the house and lo and behold, the solution was standing among my wine and liquor glasses. For Fathers Day, my wife got me two shot glasses with the word dad on them. The shot glasses were a decent size, square and the word dad was in pewter on one side. This was perfect! Until Chanukah I was using a real man's candlestick.

On Pesach, those very useful Fathers Day's presents were put away. Luckily, I had three shot glasses that my mother-in-law brought from Florida that I never managed to toivel and they were never used and were standing in the bookshelf in my son's room. They were round and painted but what can you do. The second meal of first day was spent in front of six candles. For the second seder, I needed a havdolah candle. One shot glass plus oil, plus two wicks, equals one havdolah! We also found seven wax candles and used three at a time for having more light for reading of the haggadah. A can from from palm hearts, turned upside down, was used as a candle holder.

We have two nice, silver candle holders and a glass one. Personally, I prefer the shot glasses to the silver. Not only do they take up a lot less space, but they are truly unique. I'm thinking of getting another square shot glass, preferably same size and style as the ones I have, putting away the silver and always using these man's candlesticks.

Easy Money

Chase has an awesome offer. Credit card that gives you 3% back for your top 3 categories for each month. These include grocery stores and gas stations. In addition, you get $50 after your first purchase. I just signed up. This is much better than my Citibank dividends card which only gives 2% and a maximum cashout of $300 per year. I hope Chase doesn't have a limit on how much of your earned cash back you can redeem.

Holier than thou

Every year, for the first seder, we go to the shul's community seder. This year was no exception. I'm famous for bringing my own wine, always having a corkscrew, bringing my own cups, home-made morror and, for the past two year, sashimi. This year, unfortunately, I forgot my sashimi at home, though one of my friends brought some cured salmon, a recipe I replicated for the last two days.

We had a family in shul, they stopped coming a while back, where the wife was quiet known for her frumminess and her isms. This year, they decided to join the seder and were sitting right behind me. I overheard her asking someone else at their table to open a bottle for her because their minchag is not to open bottles. This was on Yom Tov. I just couldn't let that go. I turned around and asked her why would she say something so ridiculous as not opening bottles on Yom Tov?! She told me that they used to go to one family when they were becoming religious and that family didn't open bottles on Yom Tov and since they're following their minchagim, they also don't open bottles on Yom Tov.

I told her a story of mine about me and another guy going to a shabbaton. Our host was this psycho frummie bal teshuva who kept telling us how humble he is by become frum, even though his father's a millionaire. He spent the whole shabbat telling us about how humble he is. He also decided to educate the stupid russkies about hilchos shabbos. Apparently you're not allowed to remove a dirty plate from the table, unless you place a piece of bread on it. He was presenting this as a halocha. This is what you get when someone thinks that if he learns gemorah, he doesn't need to learn halochos. This guy, however, didn't have a minchag of eating suedat shlishi, even though it's in gemorah too.

I told the woman that the point of my story is that there are minchagim and there are personal chumras, frequently based on ignorance. A minchag is something that a lot of people do and it's generally accepted, this is quiet the opposite of a personal chumra. She told me that it is so a minchag and since their friends have followed it, they will follow it too. Incidentally, I'm pretty sure her rabbi will disagree with her on this. This quiet pissed me off and I told her that her friends don't know halocha and based their chumra on ignorance and that she doesn't know halochas either. She harrumphed and turned to her table.

Opening bottles on shabbat is a hotly contested topic with many holding that you can and many holding that you can't. Sephardim are allowed and even by ashkenazim, many agree that if the bottle cap will be thrown away or is punctured, opening is ok. I have not heard or been able to find any opinion that says you can't open bottle on Yom Tov. Uneducated frummies will always find some way to make their life difficult.

Pesach Stir-Fry

Wok + chicken cut into small cubes + bag of frozen California style vegetables + BBQ sauce = Pesach Stir-Fry.

Those Who Hunt Elves - Ежик и туман

Another one of Shlomik's favs. He loves the tank in this one.

Tokyo Mew Mew - Sugar Baby Love

Shlomik's current fav.

Chicken thighs for Pesach

I use a small wok for most of my Pesach cooking. One great way to use it is for chicken cut in 8 or chicken thighs. The wok is just the right size for 4 chicken thighs. I like to use apricot or cranberry based chicken sauce, half a bottle or about 9 oz. To shorten the cooking time, cover with a narrow, tight fitting lid that should rest about half an inch above the chicken.

Chag Kasher V'Sameach!