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So that searching-for-chametz thing...was nearly successful.
See, this is how it works: you're supposed to get rid of all leavened items before Pesach hits. One tries to eat them all up before Pesach, that being the most sensible way to get rid of food.
If you've got stuff that you can't eat up (say you own a whisky distillery), you're allowed to sell your stuff temporarily over Pesach. This sale is generally nominal, but it's a sale, nonetheless.
This is why I personally try to eat up everything, but if I fail, and there's stuff left that will cost me a lot of money to replace, I put the sellable stuff into a box and arrange a sale.
It has to be stuff that someone in their right mind would buy, though. No selling the crusty bits under the bookcases that the dog likes. Also, only stuff in the box gets sold (the way I see it; some people do it differently).
So when I found a six-pack of Oreos and a couple of KitKats in an unexpected location during Pesach week, I was somewhat perturbed. Here is real true leaven, in my house, unsold, and it is Pesach week. Yes, right before Pesach we make a declaration that we renounce ownership of any leaven still accidentally in our possession, and that it is to be considered as the dust of the earth, but think about it: if you saw a six-pack of Oreos in my bookshelf and I told you they weren't mine and in fact they weren't there at all, they were actually just dust, you'd raise an inimical eyebrow, wouldn't you. A lone dog biskit, maybe; a six-pack of Oreos, not so much.
Anyway, you find leaven in your house that is not in the sale location. In this case - raise your hands if you knew this, children - the only permitted course of action is to BURN IT. If it is yom tov, you have to cover it up and burn it after yom tov, since you mayn't burn food to death on yom tov itself. You can't just throw it out, give it to the neighbour, or make it unfood by pouring bleach on it, like you can before Pesach week. Have to burn it.
SO WE DID. The leaven, a bottle of rubbing alcohol (which is not leaven), some newspapers, a box of matches, me, MarGavriel, and the dog - we all went to the park and found a secluded location (behind a monument with a handy concrete base) in which to make a fire.
Douse the Oreos and KitKats (oh, and some Cheezits, I forgot those) in alcohol. Twist newspaper into sticks (quicker than finding dry sticks). Pile up the newspaper sticks and put the leaven on top. Light the newspaper.
Dog strains to get at the chocolate. Detail MarGavriel to keep the dog away from the fire.
Combination of alcohol and fresh breeze makes the fire burn HIGH and HOT; it all burns swiftly and thoroughly until the leaven is GONE.
I wasn't expecting the KitKats to burn well at all, but they were reduced to chocolate-sizzled ash; the cream melted out of the Oreos; the Cheezits burned right up...for a tiny fire made with newspaper sticks, it was a surprisingly successful exercise, and extremely satisfying.
See, this is how it works: you're supposed to get rid of all leavened items before Pesach hits. One tries to eat them all up before Pesach, that being the most sensible way to get rid of food.
If you've got stuff that you can't eat up (say you own a whisky distillery), you're allowed to sell your stuff temporarily over Pesach. This sale is generally nominal, but it's a sale, nonetheless.
This is why I personally try to eat up everything, but if I fail, and there's stuff left that will cost me a lot of money to replace, I put the sellable stuff into a box and arrange a sale.
It has to be stuff that someone in their right mind would buy, though. No selling the crusty bits under the bookcases that the dog likes. Also, only stuff in the box gets sold (the way I see it; some people do it differently).
So when I found a six-pack of Oreos and a couple of KitKats in an unexpected location during Pesach week, I was somewhat perturbed. Here is real true leaven, in my house, unsold, and it is Pesach week. Yes, right before Pesach we make a declaration that we renounce ownership of any leaven still accidentally in our possession, and that it is to be considered as the dust of the earth, but think about it: if you saw a six-pack of Oreos in my bookshelf and I told you they weren't mine and in fact they weren't there at all, they were actually just dust, you'd raise an inimical eyebrow, wouldn't you. A lone dog biskit, maybe; a six-pack of Oreos, not so much.
Anyway, you find leaven in your house that is not in the sale location. In this case - raise your hands if you knew this, children - the only permitted course of action is to BURN IT. If it is yom tov, you have to cover it up and burn it after yom tov, since you mayn't burn food to death on yom tov itself. You can't just throw it out, give it to the neighbour, or make it unfood by pouring bleach on it, like you can before Pesach week. Have to burn it.
SO WE DID. The leaven, a bottle of rubbing alcohol (which is not leaven), some newspapers, a box of matches, me, MarGavriel, and the dog - we all went to the park and found a secluded location (behind a monument with a handy concrete base) in which to make a fire.
Douse the Oreos and KitKats (oh, and some Cheezits, I forgot those) in alcohol. Twist newspaper into sticks (quicker than finding dry sticks). Pile up the newspaper sticks and put the leaven on top. Light the newspaper.
Dog strains to get at the chocolate. Detail MarGavriel to keep the dog away from the fire.
Combination of alcohol and fresh breeze makes the fire burn HIGH and HOT; it all burns swiftly and thoroughly until the leaven is GONE.
I wasn't expecting the KitKats to burn well at all, but they were reduced to chocolate-sizzled ash; the cream melted out of the Oreos; the Cheezits burned right up...for a tiny fire made with newspaper sticks, it was a surprisingly successful exercise, and extremely satisfying.
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