On the Purim-Pesach highway

Purim is in two days, which officially marks the beginning of my least favorite time of the year: the weeks between Purim and Pesach.

I always say that all the Pesach prep is probably meant to really help us get into the shoes of the enslaved Israelites in Egypt. It’s more than just spring cleaning, which many people around the world do. It’s practically overhauling one’s whole house. It’s getting obsessively neurotic over every crumb and every trace of leavened bread. It’s packing and unpacking dishes, cookware, and practically all the kitchenware – twice in the span of a week.

By the end of that time, I’m just left with my tongue hanging out, desperate to have my life back.

But there is a silver lining. This period is also the absolute best time of the year to acquire various roadside finds, as people are going through their houses and closets and throw away things, often in excellent condition. You know what they say – one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. A big part of our furniture consists of such timely finds that have been serving us for long years now.

While I’m generally a big fan of saving space and getting rid of stuff, sometimes you just happen to be in need of something, and then you’re actually driving by and it stares you right in the face – like for example this good-as-new bed frame we had hauled home last week. After a thorough treatment with furniture polish, I can already envision how it will shine in its intended spot. Naturally, I don’t buy furniture polish – I’m currently experimenting with a few homemade, eco-friendly versions.

Happy cleaning, everyone. Remember not to work too hard and just enjoy this beautiful time of year when the earth seems to be stirring awake.

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Author: Anna

An Orthodox Jewish wife and mother enjoying a simple life with her family and chickens, somewhere in the hills, in Israel.

10 thoughts on “On the Purim-Pesach highway”

  1. I rarely get time to thrift shop these days but I truly LOVE finding treasures for a bit of nothing!! Some of the best things I have ever had, came at a next-to-nothing cost!! Glad you all find nice things too!!

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    1. It’s unbelievable how sometimes roadside finds can be a lot better than what you would buy at a store, even if you’re ready to pay good money!

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  2. almost forty years ago now, I found an end table by a dumpster in an apartment parking lot. I brought it home and my husband glued the cracks and I painted it. It’s still in my living room today. Yay for scavengers!

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    1. How satisfying! I recall thinking I should go shopping for boys’ clothes a couple of years ago when I unexpectedly found a bag full of lovely clothes in pristine condition – of brands I could never have afforded myself. There were two of each set as apparently they belonged to twins. That was my son’s whole wardrobe for the season.

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      1. Heh…what a find!! Our first trip to Jerusalem, in 2010, I had brought a coat with me that I did not intend to take back…and our B&B lady told me to just leave it on her apt’s fence out front and in a day or so, it would be gone…interesting way to do things!!

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      2. I have found many things on or under fences this way, including a game of monopoly that has given us countless hours of entertainment.

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  3. When I was “between husbands” we lived in an apartment complex where people would put unneeded items beside the dumpster: I don’t want it; you may have it. We picked up a couple of things that way, but the girls were not beyond looking *inside* the dumpster, either. The found a vacuum cleaner with a broken switch – you had to plug it in and unplug it to use it – and a clock radio with a nonfunctional snooze button. Both of those items served us well for many, many years.

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    1. I love the term “between husbands” 😁. We’ve picked up some useful items over the years too, but there’s a limit to how much one’s home can hold so I’m always careful with this.

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      1. My first husband died – a natural death, I might add! – and I married the Squire about two years later. He was just “somebody from work”, but when I needed a date for a wedding, he agreed to join me, and that was pretty much that. I’ve often joked it being the most expensive free meal ever!

        I discovered later than he had been Jacob to my Rachel since the first day he saw me, but I never knew it.

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