From Nation's Capital to Nation's Capital: The Azza Street Spy

Pesach Cleaning in Section 8 Housing: Cake!
One thing that I love about holidays (secular ones, included) is that it provides an opportunity for instant reflection. What was I doing last year at this time?

One definite plus to living in spartan, government housing is that Pesach cleaning is SO much easier. I am not sleeping here a single night of the 7 day (hee-hee) holiday. But, still, I have to clean. Living in such small quarters with so few possessions does simplify Pesach cleaning... In addition, I am moving out of government housing into private, market-value housing the day after Pesach. The day after Pesach which is also known outside Israel as the 8th day of the holiday (hee-hee; anyone here noticing a pattern to my pleasure?). Since I am moving out Thursday afternoon, going to work Thursday morning (a definite downside to the shorter holiday; you get back to work sooner), and not living here the week prior, I have to be *all* packed before Pesach. But, this way I can combine my cleaning with my packing. Suits me.

What was I doing last year? Definitely losing my marbles. Last year was the Pesach cleaning from hell. Even though I fled, as I did every year, to my parents' home in the suburbs, cleaning is still required. What made last year miserable was that it was my pre-aliyah Pesach/spring cleaning. At that point I knew I was moving to Israel, so my spring cleaning was more thorough than usual.

As of last Nisan, I had been effectively living in the same home for seven years, and just finished graduate school. (The first 14 months were in the building next door to the one where I lived for the next 6 years.) You are probably not surprised to read that I had saved *every* piece of mail, correspondence, and everything else from grad school and other aspects of my life.

**Did I still need all of my library notices and receipts? No. (Note: while you might think it is silly to save 7 years of receipts, they come in handy when you want to prove that they should not have charged you a late fee.)

**Did I need every piece of mail from the University, including tuition bills and receipts? Since my diploma was in hand, I could toss the bills. You can't graduate if you have outstanding obligations. But, other letters were important. (Note: As I continue to be harrassed by the Ministry of Education re: recognizing my foreign PhD, some of these letters have come in really handy. Friends are usually surprised when they hear that a) I saved everything and b) how my pack-rat tendencies are helping my absorption...)

**Did I need the letters from the Fire Department stating that my kitchen fire in May 2001 was accidental? Well, two years after a collection agency came after me and I had to send them away. Maybe I still need them??

And on and on.

So, yes, I saved too much and having not moved that whole length of time meant that I never went through it seriously. The light at the end of the miserable Spring Cleaning tunnel was that in the end I would be living in Israel.

So here I am, having achieved my dream of slavery to freedom. The contrasts between the two cleaning efforts are slavery to freedom by themselves. And, moving out of spartan, but definitely not Greek, housing to the best location in the city the day after the holiday is its own slavery to freedom, mei-avdut le-herut.

Good luck with your respective cleanings and may you have a Hag Kasher V'Sameach!

Advertisement