Kitchen Garden Forum

I sometimes womder if the fruit & veg stallholder at our local market has any idea what he's selling. The courgettes are labelled Corjets, the aubergines are labelled Obos .and the cauliflowers are labelled Collies Mind you, he seems to have a very high turnover so I guess being able to spell is not an essential part of the job. The posh people round here usually come up and ask for some of his zucchini which really throws him as he has no idea what they're asking for. And of course in spring, the asparagus is always labelled Sparrowgrass !

I was amused once to find him selling Mouli. Despite having obviously bought it from the wholesaler, the guy had absolutely no idea what it was or how it was eaten. He thought it was a type of parsnip! I asked him if they were grown in the UK and he he said he didn't think so as they looked "foreign". It just seemed to me a little strange that somebody who made a living from these products knew so little about them.

I think it's a general trait among greengrocers to wind us up. They all seem to have this unique way of spelling.

Diane wrote:I think it's a general trait among greengrocers to wind us up. They all seem to have this unique way of spelling.

Definately !

I used to do it in our shop if it gets people talking its good for business

In the case of many youngsters forced onto the internet and the need for text, they either use text-speak or claim to have a learning disability that was invented for their benefit according to one source writing in the Independent.

I'm not very good with spelling but I make an effort to be understood.

Also, I use Apple computers. Safari has a speel-checer.

Local pub puts deliberate spelling mistakes in the blackboard menu and anyone who makes it their business to point them out to the bar staff has to put a £1 in the RNLI box! This also goes for any mobile phone use in the pub and if you try to pick up the £1 coin cemented into the stone floor....

MW

MW that sounds like great fun, I'd love to sit and watch how many people try to pick up that £1 coin!

It is! They usually have a little scuff at it first with a foot and when it doesn't move down goes the hand.

They used to have a barman from South Africa called Clint who had a wonderfully laconic way of picking up the RNLI collection boat and wandering over to any offending mobile phone user, giving the box a rattle and a nod, 'no mobiles in here' rattle, rattle...

The pub attracts the more well-heeled yachties as well as locals and Clint was once hailed in a loud boarding school voice from a table of 4 with 'could I possibly have another bottle of wine', he turned round slowly and said, 'possibly.....' and wandered away!

MW

Love the idea of a charity collection box penalty for mobile phone users. Perhaps we should try it for the odd rude guest who comes to dinner at our house.
On the other hand the jug of water placed on the table with the comment "This isn't for drinking. House rules are that anybody who uses a mobile during mealtimes puts it in the jug!". usually gets the message across fairly succinctly, whether you mean it or not.